Christmas in Nagano
by Anime Master ZERO
Summary: The Tamers decide to spend a week of Christmas vacation in Nagano. Some Jurato & Jenki involved. Also features Ryo.
1. Motion Sickness

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
There will be some Jurato and Jenki. So if you have different tastes in couples, leave now.  
  
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Chapter 1: MOTION SICKNESS  
  
Takato was rumaging through his closet looking for his winter jacket, ski gloves, and other winter wear. He and the other Tamers were going to spend a week in Nagano for Christmas and Takato was very excited. His blue duffel bag was practically jam-packed with shirts, pants, socks, underwear, toiletries, and pajamas.  
  
"What are you doing, Takato?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"I'm packing," said Takato, "We're going on vacation, so I have to bring all of this stuff with us."  
  
"What's a vacation?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"A vacation's a...um," Takato was having trouble defining vacation for Guilmon, "It's when you go away from home for a while to have fun."  
  
"Like when we go out to play!" said Guilmon.  
  
"Uh, no," said Takato, "A vacation is when you go to a place far away to have fun."  
  
"How far?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"You go out of the city to another place," said Takato, "You get to do fun things there that you can't do at home."  
  
"Yay! Yay! I want to come, Takato!" said Guilmon.  
  
"Well, that's the problem," said Takato, "You're way too big." Guilmon groaned in disappointment.  
  
"Hurry up, Takato!" called Mrs. Matsuda, "We're leaving soon to take you to the airport!"  
  
"I'm coming mom!" called Takato.  
  
"You're not going to leave me here, are you?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"We'll think of something," said Takato. He looked out his window and saw a large box outside. He suddenly got an idea.  
  
A few moments later, Takato was sitting in the back seat of his parents' car with Guilmon as they rode to the airport. Guilmon was feeling very giddy about the entire trip. They finally arrived at the airport on the departures floor. Mr. and Mrs. Matsuda helped Takato get a buggy and put his luggage on it.  
  
"Well, son. This is it," said Mr. Matsuda, "Are you sure you've got everything?"  
  
"Yeah, I've got everything," said Takato.  
  
"Come here, Takato," said Mrs. Matsuda. She squatted down and gave her son a good-bye hug.  
  
"I want a hug, too!" said Guilmon. He ran over and joined Mrs. Matsuda and Takato. Then, Takato's father joined them. They eventually pulled apart.  
  
"Have fun, Takato," said Mrs. Matsuda.  
  
"I will!" called Takato.  
  
"See you in a week, kiddo," said Mr. Matsuda.  
  
"Okay, dad! See ya!" called Takato. He waved good-bye as his parents got in their car and drove away.  
  
"Parent-child-Digimon group hug? That's way too `adorable' for my taste," said a voice. Takato turned and saw Ruki standing by the door with her bag by her feet.  
  
"You never like anything adorable, anyway," said Takato, "By the way, when did YOU get here?"  
  
"I hitched a ride with Lee and his father," answered Ruki.  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, Takato could see Lee pushing his way through the crowd, wheeling his suitcase right behind him. "Here you go, Ruki," said Lee as he handed Ruki an object wrapped in silver, "Double cheeseburger, no onions."  
  
"Thank you, Lee," said Ruki. Takato smiled. Lee and Ruki had been going out for at least a month now and their love was really starting to grow. Takato sighed. He hoped that he would get some time alone with Juri on their vacation.  
  
"So where's puppet-girl, visor-kid, and nerd-boy?" asked Ruki.  
  
"Who are you calling nerd-boy?" came a voice. The three Tamers turned and saw Kenta with his backpack. Next to him was Kazu, who couldn't bring Guardromon, since he was much bigger than Guilmon.  
  
"Where are Guardromon and MarineAngemon?" asked Takato.  
  
"Guardromon's too big to take," said Kazu.  
  
"And MarineAngemon will freeze up there in the mountains," said Kenta, "That and also because of the springs."  
  
Takato chuckled a bit. The hotel that they were going to stay at had hot springs and Kenta had a phobia about people seeing him naked. He was always nervous when their class had to change for gym, but sitting in a hot spring with all the boys just made him feel even queasier. And the thought of MarineAngemon being there with him just threw him off the deep end. "I can see why," said Takato. He looked around the terminal, but there was no sign of Juri. He began to worry that she wouldn't come.  
  
"Get a hold of yourself, gogglehead," said Ruki.  
  
A loud bark from behind Takato caused him to suddenly jump and nearly wet his pants. He turned and saw Juri with her puppet and suitcase and blushed. "Juri," he said, "Uh...hi?"  
  
"Say! Where's Leomon?" asked Kazu.  
  
"He was way too big for the plane," said Juri.  
  
"Where's Renamon?" asked Kenta. He suddenly felt someone's presence right behind him.  
  
"What took you so long?" asked Ruki.  
  
"Sorry, Ruki," said Renamon, "I had some trouble trying to find your group through this crowd."  
  
"Why don't we check ourselves in and get to the gate," said Lee. Just then, he noticed Guilmon. "Uh, Takato? Just how do you plan to take Guilmon with us?"  
  
Takato held up a large cardboard box. "I've got that covered."  
  
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Takato hefted his bag onto the conveyor belt. Then he lifted a large box on it and labeled it as FRAGILE.  
  
"That must be one heck of a thing," said the person behind the desk. She stamped Takato's boarding pass and handed them back to him. "There you go."  
  
"Thank you," said Takato.  
  
"Well, let's head on over to our gate," said Lee. He was worried, though. How was he going to get Terriermon through customs? An idea struck him. He took Terriermon out of his bag and held him like a stuffed animal. When it was his turn to step through the gate, he gave Terriermon to the customs officer, who brought him over to the other side. In two minutes, all of the kids had gone through customs.  
  
"What gate are we?" asked Takato.  
  
"We're Gate 47," said Lee, checking his boarding pass. He looked at a map of the entire airport on the wall. "Let's see. We're near Gate 1. Gate 47 is on the other side of this terminal. And according to my watch, our plane starts boarding in approximately 5 minutes."  
  
"Five minutes?" asked Takato, "That doesn't give us a lot of time!"  
  
"Very observant gogglehead," said Ruki. The Tamers all grabbed their things and ran towards their gate like mad.  
  
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"Attention please? Preboarding for flight 497 to Nagano begins now," said one of the airport workers, "Those who are travelling with small children or seniors may board at this time."  
  
The six Tamers screeched to a halt just in time for their turn to board. "We made it," said Takato.  
  
The Tamers boarded and took their seats. Takato had the window seat, but he decided to give it to Juri, who refused, saying that she got sick from looking out the window, so Takato sat in the window seat while Juri sat in the center. Sitting on the aisle seat was Kenta. Behind them, Kazu sat in the window seat with Ruki in the middle and Lee in the aisle seat.  
  
After waiting for at least another half-hour, the Tamers felt the plane begin to move. "Welcome to Flight 497 to Nagano," came the pilot's voice, "At this time, we ask that you switch off all electronic equipment, raise your seatbacks to an upright position, put away your tray tables, and store all carry-on baggage either under the seat in front of you or in the overhead compartment. The duration of our flight is approximately one hour. Please enjoy the rest of your flight." Some flight attendants moved around the cabin getting ready for the demonstration.  
  
"I wonder what movie we're gonna see," said Kazu.  
  
"It's a one-hour flight. They wouldn't have time to show a movie even if they wanted to," said Lee, "We might as well get some shuteye."  
  
The demonstration took about ten minutes, since they had to do it twice, once in English and once in Japanese. After another fifteen minutes of waiting, they were finally off. Takato stared out the window as they took off. Juri placed her hand on his.  
  
Ruki looked over at Lee and saw that the navy-haired boy had fallen asleep. She had never seen him asleep before, so the sight of him almost took her breath away as Lee slept with his seat leaned back, snoring silently, which was almost impossible to hear over the plane's engines. She put on her headphones and listened to the rock music on station number five on her armrest.  
  
As soon as the plane reached cruising altitude, flight attendants began to go around the cabin serving snacks and drinks. One flight attendant reached Takato's row. "Would any of you like something to drink?" she asked.  
  
"I'd like an Orange Crush, please," said Takato.  
  
"Could I please have some orange juice?" asked Juri.  
  
"Some tomato juice, please," said Kenta.  
  
The flight attendant gave each of them a napkin, a bag of pretzels, and their drinks. Then she moved onto the next row. "Would you like anything to drink?" she asked.  
  
Ruki shook Lee awake. "Wake up, Lee," she said, "You want something to drink or not?"  
  
"I'd like some ginger ale, please," said Lee.  
  
"I'll take a Coke," said Ruki.  
  
"I'll have a Pepsi," said Kazu.  
  
The three of them got their drinks and their snacks before the flight attendant moved on. Five minutes later, they came back to collect all the empty cups and garbage. It was then that Takato felt that he needed to go.  
  
"Um, Juri? Kenta? Can I just get out for a sec," he asked, "I gotta go to the bathroom." Juri and Kenta quickly got out of their seats to allow Takato to get out and go to the lavatory. Takato's face fell when he saw that both lavatories in their part of the cabin were occupied. So he just stood there, trying to hold it in with his hands. As soon as one person came out, Takato immediately rushed in and locked the door. He undid his pants and gave a huge sigh of relief. He was just washing his hands when the plane began to shake. He quickly returned to his seat and buckled in. "What's going on?" he asked.  
  
At that moment, the seatbelt sign came on and the pilot's voice came over the plane's PA system, "Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing turbulence. At this time, we advise all passengers to return to their seats and fasten their seatbelts."  
  
Terriermon looked up from his position under the seat in front of Lee and saw that Lee had fallen asleep again. "How can he sleep through all of this?" he wondered. Lee had removed his shoes and Terriermon was using one of his ears as a gas mask.  
  
The rest of the flight did not go smoothly. The motions of going up and down made Takato feel very uneasy. "I shouldn't have eaten that bacon triple cheeseburger before we left," he thought.  
  
"Takato? Are you alright?" asked Juri. She placed a hand on one of Takato's.  
  
"He doesn't look too hot," said Kazu.  
  
"It's not important," said Ruki, "It's just motion sickness. His stomach can't handle this kind of stuff."  
  
Takato suddenly lunged forward and grabbed the barf bag from his seatback pocket. He punched the bag open and began heaving into it. The sound practically disgusted everyone.  
  
"Takato!" said Juri. She patted Takato on the back, only to succeed in causing him to throw up even more.  
  
"Anyone bring any Pepto Bismol?" asked Kazu.  
  
"Will you be okay Takato?" asked Juri. Takato slowly put down his barf bag. He grabbed Juri's and continued regurgitating. After he was done with hers, he grabbed Kenta's.  
  
"Man! That is one lean mean barfing machine!" said Kazu.  
  
Lee woke up from his nap at the slowly rising smell of something being regurgitated. "What's going on?" he asked semi-sleepily.  
  
"Takato's throwing up," said Ruki, "He's already on his third bag." Terriermon climbed onto Lee's head and looked down at Takato.  
  
"Yeesh! And I thought Lee's shoes smelled bad," said Terriermon.  
  
"Thanks a lot, Terriermon," said Lee.  
  
"Momentai," said Terriermon. Takato threw up into the bag again.  
  
"Nice going, Terriermon," said Lee.  
  
"I'm going to ring a flight attendant," said Kenta.  
  
"I think that's a good idea," said Lee. Kenta pushed the call button on his armrest. In a few moments, a flight attendant came by. "Hi. Could you please get some more motion sickness bags for my friend?"  
  
"And some ginger ale and napkins too, please," said Lee.  
  
"Certainly," said the flight attendant. She left and quickly returned with three barf bags, a dozen paper napkins, and a can of ginger ale.  
  
"Thank you," said Lee. Takato coughed and sputtered. At last, Takato stopped. He sealed off the bag and put it on the floor. The area around his mouth was covered with barf, tears were running down his cheeks, and Juri almost swore that there was sweat on his forehead.  
  
"Here, Takato," she said. She took a napkin and wiped Takato's mouth and the area around it. Kazu helped wipe up the tears and sweat.  
  
"Here, Takato," said Lee as he handed Takato the ginger ale, "Drink this. It'll settle your stomach." Takato moaned in response.  
  
"At least chew this," said Kazu, handing Takato a piece of gum, "We don't wanna smell your barf breath the rest of the way." Takato took the gum and popped it in his mouth. He chewed slowly.  
  
"He still looks pretty green," said Kenta.  
  
Just then, the pilot's voice came on the PA system, "Ladies and gentlemen, we are now beginning are decent into Nagano. Please switch off all electronic equipment, raise your seatbacks to an upright position, put away your tray tables, and store all carry-on baggage either under the seat in front of you or in the overhead compartment. Flight attendants, please make preparations for landing."  
  
"It's going to be over soon, Takato," said Juri, "Just hold on." Takato only moaned in agony in response to Juri.  
  
The landing took only about fifteen minutes, but it took another eight minutes for the plane to reach the gate and yet another five minutes for the Tamers to get out of the plane. Takato still felt woozy, so Lee and Kazu had to help him off the plane. "You're back on solid ground, Takato," said Lee.  
  
"You can open your eyes now," joked Kazu. Takato felt better now that he was off the plane, but he still felt a little uneasy. The other Tamers walked him through Customs all the way to baggage claim. By that time, Takato was able to walk by himself.  
  
"What carousel do we pick up our bags from?" asked Kenta.  
  
"Carousel 3," said Lee, "Takato, you'll have to go to Carousel 1 to pick up odd-sized or fragile luggage."  
  
"Thanks, Lee," said Takato. He quickly ran off towards Carousel 1. Kazu and Ruki returned with two baggage buggies and the rest of them went off to collect their baggage.  
  
Takato was standing in front of a small ramp with two small garage doors behind them. he eagerly awaited for the one box that he had placed on the plane. But he began to worry. What if the box hadn't been put on the plane? What if it was put on the wrong flight? Takato was really worrying, but finally, a familiar box labeled FRAGILE slid down the ramp. Takato pulled the box out and placed it on a baggage buggy. Then he ran to join the others. He was glad that everyone had found his duffel bag, too.  
  
"Everyone ready to go?" asked Lee.  
  
"We're ready," said the others.  
  
"Wait! Where's Renamon?" asked Ruki. Just as her words left her mouth, the fox Digimon appeared beside her.  
  
"I'm here, Ruki," she said.  
  
"That's good," said Ruki.  
  
"Say, where's Guilmon?" asked Kazu. Takato opened the top of the box and Guilmon sprang out.  
  
"Hey!" cheered Guilmon, "Takato, can we eat now? I'm hungry."  
  
"We'll eat when we get to the hotel," said Takato.  
  
Lee opened up his backpack and gasped. "Look, everyone! Looks like we have a stowaway," he said. He reached in his hand and pulled out Culumon.  
  
"Hi ,everybody!" said Culumon. The Tamers all laughed. They put Guilmon back in his box before heading out of the terminal.  
  
END OF CHAPTER 1  
  
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So what do you think? Takato's experience on the plane was based on some of my own encounters with planes and turbulence (minus the 3 bags part.)  
  
Please send me your reviews. Let me know what you think. 


	2. First Night in Nagano

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
NOTE: this chapter includes some locker room scenes (nothing major, though). If you feel uncomfortable about this, leave now. Otherwise, read on.  
  
Last time, the Tamers were on their way to Nagano to spend one week of Christmas vacation. Along the way, Takato encountered a little (okay, so it's not so little) accident. Now they're finally in Nagano, ready for excitement and relaxation.  
  
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Chapter 2: FIRST NIGHT IN NAGANO  
  
The Tamers all stepped out of the airport. They were all surprised by how cold it was. Fortunately, every had their jackets in their backpacks. "Ooh! It sure is cold," said Takato.  
  
"HEY! Over here!" shouted someone. The Tamers turned their heads and saw a familiar person waving at them from the other side of the road.  
  
"Look! It's Ryo!" said Takato, "Hey, Ryo! Good to see ya!" He ran up to the Legendary Tamer. "I didn't know you were coming. Say, how's Cyberdramon doing?"  
  
"Why don't you ask him yourself?" replied Ryo. Cyberdramon landed behind, Ryo, causing Takato to fall backwards.  
  
"Don't scare me like that!" said Takato. He got up off the ground and brushed himself off. Just then, the other Tamers came running up to them.  
  
"Hey, Ryo! Long time, no see," said Lee.  
  
"So, even the Legendary Tamer takes holidays, too," said Ruki.  
  
"So, even the Digimon Queen goes on ski vacations, too," said Ryo, rephrasing Ruki's sentence. The Tamers laughed, including Terriermon and Guilmon. Finally, after about a minute or so, they stopped.  
  
"Come on, everyone," said Ryo, "I'll take you to the hotel. After that, we can all grab a bite to eat."  
  
"Yay! Food!" cheered Guilmon, "Let's go!" he ducked as Takato closed his box. Then they all headed out to the bus station.  
  
"Bus number 28 should take us to the hotel," said Ryo.  
  
"Can't we just take a cab?" asked Kazu.  
  
"Are you kidding? Do you even realize just how much those things charge?" asked Lee, "Way more than you could afford. Besides, we can't take a cab. Guilmon's box won't even fit in the trunk."  
  
"So where do we take Bus 28?" asked Juri.  
  
"Well, according to this map, the stop for Bus 28 should be...right here," said Ryo. Everyone looked to their left. They saw a fair-sized airport shuttle bus with the number 28 on it in big bold digits. The Tamers all helped Takato get Guilmon's box into the bus.  
  
"That's quite a load you've got there," said the bus driver. The seven Tamers got everything on the bus, paid the fee, and sat down together near the front of the bus along with their luggage.  
  
"What's our hotel called?" asked Kenta.  
  
"I got rooms booked for us at the Nirvana Hotel," said Lee, checking his forms. After a thirty-minute bus ride, the Tamers reached their hotel. The grabbed their bags and Guilmon and stepped off the bus. "This is it," said Lee.  
  
"It's big," said Juri.  
  
"Let's hurry up and get our rooms," said Ruki. The Tamers went inside. Takato, Ruki, Juri, Kenta, Kazu, Guilmon, Renamon, Terriermon, and Cyberdramon waited in the lobby while Lee and Ryo checked in. A porter came by and asked them if they wanted their luggage to be taken up to their room.  
  
"That would be good. Thank you," said Takato. Everyone placed their bags and suitcases on the cart, including Guilmon's box. Takato wasn't too worried. He had told Guilmon to stay quiet all the way. Finally, Ryo and Lee returned from the front desk.  
  
"We're in rooms 2118 to 2120," said Lee, "Twenty-first floor."  
  
"Then what are we waiting for?" asked Ruki. The porter followed the Tamers to the elevators. Lee, Terriermon, Kazu, and Kenta took the first elevator up. Takato, Ryo, and the porter took the second elevator. Ruki, Juri, and Renamon took the last elevator. They rode up to the twenty-first floor and stepped out of the elevators upon reaching it. Lee led the way to their rooms with the porter right behind him.  
  
"Room 2115. Room 2116. Room 2117. Ah, here we go! Rooms 2118 to 2120!" said Lee, "Thank you. We'll take over from here."  
  
"As you wish, sir," said the porter and unloaded the luggage off the cart. Lee took out some money and tried to figure out how much to tip the porter. He sighed and dumped two bills in his hand before the porter left. Then he took out the keys and began assigning rooms. He, Takato, and Ryo, Guilmon, Terriermon, and Cyberdramon had Room 2118. Ruki, Juri, and Renamon were assigned Room 2119. Kazu and Kenta were stuck with Room 2120.  
  
"Well, let's go in," said Lee. Everyone unlocked their doors and walked inside, dragging their luggage behind them. Takato, Lee, Ryo, and Terriermon were surprised by their room. There were two king-sized beds against the far-left wall. To the right was a dresser, a desk, a mirror, and a TV. There were some chairs and a table and a couple of floor lamps. There was a large window on the opposite wall from the door. Ryo checked the bathroom. Aside from four sets of towels, the bathtub, the small bars of soap, and the small bottles of shampoo and conditioner, there was also a hairdryer, a clothesline, some hair gel, nail clippers, shower caps, and even a waterproof radio.  
  
"This is nice," said Ryo. Lee opened the closet and took out the suitcase rack. He unfolded it and opened his suitcase. Takato put his duffel bag on the floor near one of the beds and let Guilmon out of his box.  
  
"Yay! We're here!" cheered Guilmon. Takato walked over to the desk and opened the leather folder that was on it. He took out the room service menu and looked through it.  
  
"This food looks good," said Takato, "Wow! Look at that!"  
  
Lee walked up to Takato and looked over his shoulder. "Look at the footnote," he said, "It says that water used to cook the food is taken from the hot springs."  
  
"Yeah, but I'm not a picky eater like you," said Ryo as he kicked off his shoes. It was true. Ryo had lived in the Digital World for about two years, so he had to live off the land, which wasn't easy, considering that there were wild Digimon everywhere and all the food was really made up of data.  
  
"Neither is Guilmon," said Takato. Everyone laughed. The all calmed down after twenty seconds. "It's...not that funny," said Takato as he stopped, "So what do you wanna do?"  
  
"Anybody hungry yet?" asked Ryo.  
  
"Not yet," said Lee.  
  
"Nope," said Takato.  
  
"I lost my appetite," said Guilmon.  
  
"I'm not hungry," said Terriermon.  
  
"Neither am I," said Cyberdramon.  
  
"So what are we gonna do?" asked Takato as he laid back on one of the beds.  
  
"There's a fitness center downstairs on the second floor," said Lee, "Anyone wanna go?"  
  
"They got a pool?" asked Ryo.  
  
"Yeah, they've got a pool," said Lee.  
  
"I'm game," said Ryo.  
  
"Me too," said Takato, "I'll get the other guys and ask them." he pulled on his shoes and ran out to Kenta and Kazu's room. Kazu answered the door.  
  
"What is it, Takato?" he asked.  
  
"There's a pool downstairs. Wanna come?" asked Takato.  
  
"Sure," said Kazu.  
  
"Count me in, too." said Kenta.  
  
"Alright!" said Takato, "Get your things. There are change rooms down there, too." He quickly ran off to ask Juri and Ruki.  
  
"Nah," said Ruki, "I'll probably work out at the fitness center."  
  
"Oh, okay," said Takato, "What about you, Juri?"  
  
"Okay," said Juri.  
  
"Great! See you down there," said Takato. He quickly returned to his room to grab his things. Rummaging through his duffel bag, he pulled out his swimming trunks. Takato looked around and saw that Lee and Ryo had also gathered their swimming gear.  
  
"Everyone, ready?" asked Ryo.  
  
"We're ready!" said Takato and Lee. They went to pick up the others and in no time at all, they were on their way. They said a brief good-bye to Ruki, who was going in the opposite direction of the pool to the workout room. The only thing that was on her mind was the punching bag. The boys and Juri walked to the pool area. It was quite large with a large swimming pool, a hot tub, and two diving boards (one high, one low). The walked over to the desk where an attendant was working.  
  
"You kids here to swim?" asked the attendant. The Tamers nodded. The attendant took out a clipboard and a pen. "Sign your names and the time you came in," he said. After signing in, the attendant gestured for them to enter the locker rooms.  
  
"See you in a bit, Juri," said Takato.  
  
"Okay, Takato," said Juri just before she disappeared into the women's locker room. Takato and the other boys quickly entered the men's locker room. Even that was impressive. There was a steam room, a sauna, a bathroom, and shower stalls. They opened their lockers and found a towel in each of them.  
  
"This is convenient," said Kazu as he removed his visor and T-shirt.  
  
"Could you guys not look while I change?" asked Kenta.  
  
"Come on, Kenta. Lighten up!" said Ryo and patted Kenta on the back, "You're one of the guys. What have you got to be ashamed of?"  
  
"Yeah," said Kazu, who had his pants already unzipped, "Afraid that we might 'see' you?"  
  
"Leave me alone!" said Kenta.  
  
"Come on, guys. Lay off him," said Takato as he pulled on his swimming trunks, "Say, Lee. Did that sign by the door say that we have to shower with soap and water before we can hop into the water?"  
  
"Apparently, yes," said Lee as he tied on his shorts. The rest of the boys quickly put on their trunks and showered. They walked out of the locker room onto the deck just as Juri came out of the women's locker room.  
  
"Hi Takato," she said.  
  
"Hi Juri," replied Takato. They quickly found some chairs to put their towels on and then it was time to have fun.  
  
"Geronimo!" shouted Kazu as he cannonballed into the water, splashing everyone.  
  
"Hey! Stop that!" said Takato.  
  
"Make me," said Kazu.  
  
"You asked for it," said Lee. The rest of them jumped into the water and swam after Kazu. Ryo did a surface dive, swam under Kazu, and popped up right in front of him. Unfortunately, instead of actually stopping him, Kazu slammed right into Ryo. The Tamers laughed and splashed each other with water. Ryo decided to take some initiative. He got out of the pool and walked over to the high dive. He climbed the twelve steps up to the top and then ran to the end of the board.  
  
"BONSAI!" he shouted as he jumped. He gracefully landed in the water and resurfaced a short moment later. For the next hour or so, the Tamers enjoyed themselves. Takato, Kenta, Kazu, and Juri goofed off, Lee swam a few laps, and Ryo kept diving off the high dive.  
  
Meanwhile, in the gym, Ruki and Renamon were enjoying their own workout. Punching bags swung violently as the two of them duked it out on them.  
  
"I'm starting to like this vacation already," said Renamon.  
  
"Better get used to it, Renamon, because we're going to spend a lot of time down here," said Ruki.  
  
Back at the pool, the Tamers decided to call quits and go out for dinner. They all returned to the locker rooms to shower and change.  
  
"Hey, Lee. Any ideas on where we can eat tonight?" asked Takato from his shower stall.  
  
"We'll need to consider the fact that the Digimon will be eating," said Lee, "And considering how much Guilmon can eat, well, I don't know."  
  
"The hotel's got a buffet," said Ryo.  
  
"Guilmon would probably eat himself to death," said Takato. The boys laughed again. Takato sighed as he shut off the water. They quickly dried off, dressed, and signed out. They picked up Ruki and Renamon from the gym and headed back up to put their things away before heading down to the restaurant. The host wondered why a red dinosaur, a big yellow fox, and a brown dragon with red wings was with them. But after they paid, she led them to a very large table and sat them down before returning to the front podium.  
  
"Well, everyone. This is it. Let's go out there and grab all the grub we can eat!" said Takato. The others nodded in agreement and ran towards the buffet. Each one of them grabbed a plate and started loading up on food.  
  
"I'll take some of this. Some that. Ooh, this looks good," Kazu was going through all the hot foods.  
  
"I'll have some of this. A little bit of this. Guilmon will definitely want this! Cool! Jell-O!" Takato filled up Guilmon's plate and his own with food.  
  
"Terriermon should eat these. And I'll take some too," said Lee as he grabbed food for himself and Terriermon.  
  
Ruki was walking through the salad bar looking for anything Renamon might want. "She'll probably want salad more than any of the meat," she said.  
  
In a minutes, the Tamers sat back down at their table with their plates loaded with food. Guilmon's eyes sparkled at the sight of the plate Takato had placed before him.  
  
"Okay, people! Dig in!" announced Takato and began scarfing down the food on his plate.  
  
"Man! I haven't eaten food like this since before I went into the Digital World!" said Ryo.  
  
"This is good! It tastes just like chicken!" said Kazu.  
  
"That's because it IS chicken," said Ruki, "How do you like your meal, Renamon?"  
  
"It's perfect," said Renamon, "Thank you, Ruki."  
  
The Tamers quickly finished their dinner and moved onto the desserts. There was quite a rush among Takato, Kenta, Kazu, and Ryo over who would get to use the ice cream machine first. After a full hour, all the Tamers laid back in their chair and sighed.  
  
"Wow! I haven't had a meal like that in years," said Ryo.  
  
"I'll say," said Takato.  
  
Lee glanced at his watch. "It's getting late," he said, "We better turn in. We've got to get an early start tomorrow." The Tamers got up and went back up to their rooms.  
  
"How did you like dinner tonight, Guilmon?" asked Takato.  
  
"It was good," replied Guilmon.  
  
"Terriermon?" asked Lee.  
  
"I'm stuffed," answered Terriermon.  
  
"Let's all get some sleep tonight," said Renamon, "Just as Lee said, tomorrow's a big day."  
  
Everyone retired to their rooms. Ruki and Juri changed into their pajamas before getting into separate beds. Renamon sat in one of the chairs and stared out at the slopes. She closed her eyes and fell asleep.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
"G'night, Kenta! See ya tomorrow morning!" said Kazu.  
  
"Good night, Kazu," said Kenta. He took off his glasses and placed them on the table next to the bed before turning off the light.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Takato was buttoning up his pajama top as he came out of the bathroom. Lee was already in his pajamas and Ryo was wearing nothing more than boxers and a tank top. Takato climbed into bed with Guilmon right next to him. Lee and Ryo got into bed after all three of them flipped a coin to decide who had to share a bed. Terriermon laid down between Lee an Ryo and Cyberdramon fell asleep in a chair.  
  
"See you all in the morning," said Takato. He turned off the last lamp and instantly fell asleep.  
  
END OF CHAPTER 2  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
So now the Tamers are all in Nagano along with Ryo and Cyberdramon. What's gonna happen next? Read chapter 3 to find out.  
  
Please send me your reviews. 


	3. Skis, Snowboards, and Motorcycles

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
Last time, the Tamers had just reached Nagano and gotten their hotel rooms. Juri and the boys decided to spend some time in the pool while Ruki and Renamon worked out in the gym. Afterwards, all of them went to the hotel restaurant and had an all-you-can-eat buffet. Now let's find out what they're going to do next.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
Chapter 3: SKIS, SNOWBOARDS, AND MOTORCYCLES  
  
Takato awoke to the sound of the shower in the bathroom running. He looked over to see that Guilmon was still asleep next to him. Cyberdramon was still snoozing in his chair. Glancing over at the other bed, Takato saw that Ryo and Terriermon were still asleep.  
  
"That must mean that Lee is in the shower," thought Takato. He stretched and got out of bed. "I wonder what we'll be doing today?" He pondered this for a while. Takato heard the water go off in the bathroom and guessed that Lee was done with his shower. He waited a minute or two before going to the bathroom. He found Lee in front of the mirror in his boxers drying his hair with the hairdryer.  
  
"Morning, Takato," said Lee, "Did you sleep well last night?"  
  
"Morning, Lee," replied Takato, "Yeah, I slept okay."  
  
"Good," said Lee, "because we're going on the slopes today."  
  
"We're skiing today?" asked Takato.  
  
"Actually, I was going to try snowboarding," said Lee.  
  
"Good idea. I think I'll try it, too," said Takato.  
  
"Are you sure?" asked Lee, "It's much harder than skiing a when you fall, it REALLY hurts. Trust me. The very first time I tried it, I couldn't sit down for a week afterwards."  
  
"It can't be that bad, can it?" asked Takato.  
  
"Oh yes it can," said Lee, "Have you even skied before?"  
  
"Only a little," answered Takato, "Maybe you're right. I'll ski this time and snowboard the next." At that moment, Ryo stumbled into the bathroom.  
  
"What have you guys been talking about?" he asked, "I want in."  
  
"We were just talking about going skiing today," said Takato.  
  
"Sounds fine to me," said Ryo and let out a big yawn, "I'll snowboard." The three boys quickly changed out of their sleepwear and into their street clothes before waking the others. Takato pounded on the door of Room 2120 until someone answered it. Kenta appeared at the door in cream-colored pajamas.  
  
"This better be important," said Kenta, "It's 6:45 in the morning."  
  
"We're going skiing!" said Takato cheerfully. Kenta suddenly snapped to full attention.  
  
"Skiing?" he asked.  
  
"Skiing," repeated Takato.  
  
"Sure, I'll come," said Kenta, "I'll wake Kazu up and then we can all go eat before we ski."  
  
"Okay. See you in a while," said Takato. In a few minutes, the seven Tamers and their Digimon met up in the hotel restaurant. They quickly ate breakfast and went back to their rooms to get their skiing gear while Lee went over to the concierge to pick up a schedule of bus departure times.  
  
"Did you get my stuff?" asked Lee when they came back down.  
  
"Yeah, we got it," said Takato.  
  
"So when do we leave?" asked Ruki.  
  
"Well, according to this bus schedule, the next bus to the slopes arrives in approximately six minutes," answered Lee.  
  
"Let's go wait," said Juri. The Tamers all stood by the lobby doors and waited. In about six minutes, the bus came by.  
  
"You kids going skiing?" asked the bus driver.  
  
"Is that a rhetorical question?" asked Ruki. The Tamers got on the bus and sat down. Lee had brought along Terriermon, and Takato had brought along Guilmon. Everyone guessed that Renamon would probably be riding on the roof of the bus while Cyberdramon flew. Takato looked around at the other Tamers and himself. He hardly ever got the chance to wear his winter clothes, nor did the others. Takato was wearing a blue ski jacket, navy-blue snow pants, a yellow and blue striped scarf, his goggles, and a pair of blue ski gloves. Ruki wore a black ski jacket, black ski gloves, and a red scarf along with her jeans. Aside from his usual wear, Lee was dressed in a green ski jacket and grey gloves. He also wore an orange scarf around his neck. Kazu had a grey pullover sweater, gloves, and his visor. Ryo's skiwear included a maroon fleece pullover, black ski gloves, and a black toque. Juri wore a light-colored jacket along with a hat and mittens. As for Kenta, everyone got quite a laugh. Kenta was wearing a grey one-piece snowsuit that he hand since three years ago and it still fit him. It even came with attached gloves.  
  
"Come on, you guys! It's all I have," said Kenta.  
  
"So how long's the trip to the hill?" asked Kazu.  
  
"First of all, it's not a hill. We're going to the mountains," said Lee, "Secondly, we'll get there in about an hour."  
  
"One hour? That's a long ways away!" said Takato, "Don't you think so, Juri?" Takato looked over at Juri and was surprised to find that she had fallen asleep, resting her head on Takato's chest. He smiled and placed a hand on Juri's head and gently stroked her hair.  
  
"Isn't that something?" said Lee, "Look at them, Takato and Juri. So peaceful-minded and relaxed."  
  
"Look, Lee. I know we're going out and all, but I do NOT go for that cute stuff," said Ruki.  
  
"I never said our relationship had to be cute," said Lee.  
  
"No, but you were implying that it should," said Ruki.  
  
"It can't hurt to have a bit of cuteness here and there, can it?" said Lee.  
  
"Yes it can," replied Ruki, "I'm a tough girl. Cute things just ruin my rep."  
  
"Then maybe I'll just find someone else who'd appreciate a little cuteness on occasion," said Lee.  
  
"Do that and I'll punch you so hard you won't ever be able to have kids," threatened Ruki.  
  
"Okay," said Lee, quickly. The last thing he ever wanted was to get hit by Ruki. Though he hadn't actually experienced it first hand, Lee had seen Ruki beat the living daylights out of other people and he knew that Ruki had one of the hardest punches in the world.  
  
The ride lasted for about an hour. During the ride, Takato and Lee had also fallen asleep. Takato had his head resting on Juri's. Finally, the slope came into view and the tamers got off the bus.  
  
"Bunny hill, here I come!" said Kenta.  
  
"Let's go get our lift passes & gear," said Ryo. The seven Tamers walked over to the pass counter and each purchased a one-day lift pass. Then they went into the lodge with their Digimon. It was a fairly big lodge. It even had private rooms for anyone who had a ski club membership and Lee's family just happened to have a ski club membership. There were two large tables, some nice chairs, a big window with curtains and blinds, a bathroom, a radio, a TV, a couch, and a mini-bar.  
  
"This is kinda nice," said Kazu as he plopped down on the couch.  
  
"Lee, this must've cost you a fortune," said Ruki.  
  
"Only about three hundred yen," said Lee.  
  
"Cool! Bathroom's even got towels and colognes," said Ryo after exploring the bathroom.  
  
"Can we just get to the rental shop?" asked Ruki, impatiently.  
  
"Let's not keep Ruki waiting," said Lee. The Tamers left their Digimon in the room and headed over to the rental shop. Takato had trouble getting his boot on.  
  
"I can't get it on!" said Takato.  
  
"Here Takato," said Lee and gave Takato a slightly larger pair of ski boots, "Try these on." Takato took the boots and put them on.  
  
"Hey! They fit!" Takato said as he snapped on the bindings, "Thanks, Lee."  
  
"Don't mention it," said Lee, who was already wearing his snowboarding boots. The Tamers all regrouped before going to collect their skis and snowboards. The attendants each one of them for their weight and came back with the right skis and boards. In a few minutes, all seven kids stood outside the rental shop entrance with their gear.  
  
"Wow! I haven't skied in such a long time," said Takato as he snapped on his skis, "I'll go practice on the bunny hill for a bit."  
  
"I think that's a good idea," said Lee, "Let's all start on the bunny hill." The Tamers walked (or cross-country skied) over to the bunny hill. They were surprised by how many people were lining up for the towrope.  
  
"Must be kids taking lessons," said Lee. The Tamers waited patiently in line for their turn to go up. When his turn came up, Takato stood there stupefied.  
  
"Point your skis forward, tuck your poles under your arm & grab the rope," said Lee. Takato did as told by Lee and pretty soon, he was being pulled up the slope by the rope. The others followed. Lee stopped about halfway up the bunny hill, since this was his first time snowboarding. He sat down on the snow and strapped his left foot to his board. Ruki did the same.  
  
"Ready, Ruki?" asked Lee as he got up.  
  
"Is that a rhetorical question?" answered Ruki and took off. She maneuvered her snowboard like a professional. Lee was absolutely stunned by just how good she was.  
  
"That is one tough woman," said Lee as he continued to stare in awe at Ruki.  
  
"Hello! Earth to Lee!" said Ryo. He was standing next to Lee with his feet already strapped to his board. "What're waiting for? Get going!" And with that, he gave Lee a push and sent him down the slope.  
  
Meanwhile, Takato was putting his hands through the loops of his ski poles. "This is going to be so great!" he thought out loud. He pulled his goggles over his eyes and pushed himself down the hill.  
  
"Takato!" shouted a voice. Takato looked over to see Juri skiing not to far from him.  
  
"Hey Juri!" he called back.  
  
"Takato!" screamed Juri, "Look out!" Takato looked forwards just in time to see the snow bank rush right up to him. He hit the snow bank with full force.  
  
"Takato!" shouted Juri & skied right up to the bank. All she could see where two skis and a pole sticking out of the snow. "Takato, can you hear me?" Takato groaned as he sat up from under a pile of snow. He spat out a couple of leaves and a bit of snow and breathed heavily for a bit.  
  
"I'm fine Juri," he said.  
  
"Don't ever do that to me again!" said Juri.  
  
"Juri," said Takato, "I..."  
  
"BAD!" said Juri through her puppet. Takato couldn't believe it. Juri had actually brought that thing with her to the slope?  
  
"And for being bad, I'm going to have to punish you!" said Juri.  
  
"Punish...me?" asked Takato as he slowly backed away, "Juri, can't we talk about this peacefully?" Juri grabbed Takato's ski jacket and pulled him close. She lifted his goggles from his face and placed her lips on his.  
  
"THIS is what Juri calls punishment?" wondered Takato, "This is more like a reward!" After he and Juri pulled apart Takato asked her, "Juri, you said you were going to punish me. Why'd you kiss me?"  
  
"That was a joke, you silly goose!" said Juri, laughing. Takato's face turned beet-red. He suddenly realized that he was still stuck in the snow bank. With some help from Juri, he pulled himself free. Juri brushed the snow off Takato, but the boy blushed when she began to brush snow off his butt. And Juri noticed it, too.  
  
"Juri," started Takato, "I..."  
  
"Hey, Gogglehead!" called Ruki as she slid to a stop in front of Takato and Juri, "Are you gonna ski or are you gonna just sit around?" Kazu and Ryo suddenly came in.  
  
"What a wipeout!" said Kazu, laughing, "And on the bunny hill, too! Did your mommy forget to pack your padding? HA HA HA HA HA!"  
  
Takato, feeling sad and dejected, turned and headed straight for the lodge. "Takato! Wait!" shouted Juri and took off after Takato.  
  
"Was it something I said?" asked Kazu, dumbfounded.  
  
"That would be a likely explanation," said Lee.  
  
"Nice going, Kazu," said Ruki, "You completely hurt Takato's feelings."  
  
"What did I do? All I did was say how sucky his skiing was!" protested Kazu.  
  
"Yes, you did," said Lee, "But you also said a couple of mean things to him, too."  
  
"Name one," demanded Kazu. Ruki pulled out a tape recorder and pressed the PLAY button.  
  
"What a wipeout! And on the bunny hill, too! Did your mommy forget to pack your padding? HA HA HA HA HA!" came Kazu's voice.  
  
"Gee. I don't know what to say," said Kazu.  
  
"For starters, you could go in there and apologize to him," said Lee.  
  
"But I..." started Kazu. The other Tamers looked at him sternly.  
  
"Do it before I sock you in the face," said Ruki, balling up her fist.  
  
"I'm going," said Kazu and took off towards the lodge.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Juri found Takato sitting by himself in the couch in their private room hunched over, crying. Terriermon was sitting on the table, Cyberdramon was sitting cross-legged on the floor, Renamon was sitting by the window, and Guilmon was taking a nap in a nearby corner.  
  
"Did you see the way Kazu made fun of me?" asked Takato.  
  
"That was a mean thing to do, wasn't it?" asked Juri.  
  
"Downright rotten," said Takato. Juri sat down next Takato and tried to comfort him. At that moment, Kazu slunk in through the door.  
  
"Hey, Takato," he said, "Look, I'm really sorry for making fun of you. Can you forgive me?" Takato looked at his friend and saw the sincerity in his eyes.  
  
"Sure, Kazu," said Takato.  
  
"I'm really, really, REALLY sorry," said Kazu.  
  
"Okay, you've made your point," said Takato, laughing a little as he did so, "Did you get that Kenta?" Kenta, who had been hiding behind the curtains, came out from his hiding place and pressed the STOP button on his tape recorder.  
  
"Every single word," he said, "Now everyone will know that Kazu's not all that high and mighty." Everyone laughed, but then Kazu decided that he deserved it.  
  
The Tamers spent the rest of the day skiing and snowboarding. Takato improved his skiing and by noon, he was taking the chair lift up the slope. By three o'clock in the afternoon, Takato was already on the blue square trails.  
  
"I have never seen anyone improve so much in one day," said Lee, astounded.  
  
"He's skied before," said Kenta, "He just needed some refreshing, that's all." They watched at Takato came down the slope again.  
  
"You're pretty good," said a deep voice, "Maybe you can try snowboarding next time." Everyone turned to see who had spoken.  
  
"I don't believe it!" said Takato, "Yamaki!"  
  
Yamaki stood there wearing black pants, skis, ski boots, a maroon ski jacket with black shoulders, and his Hypnos sunglasses. Riley was there with him.  
  
"Yamaki! What're you doing here?" asked Lee.  
  
"Riley and I decided to go on a ski trip for Christmas vacation," answered Yamaki.  
  
"It's great to see you again," said Takato. Then he turned to the other Tamers. "Come on you guys. Let's go return our stuff and get back to the hotel."  
  
The seven Tamers returned their gear to the rental shop and retrieved their shoes. Then they headed over to the lodge to pick up their Digimon. After fifteen minutes of waiting for he bus and the one-hour bus ride back, the Tamers finally reached their hotel back in Nagano.  
  
"That was fun," said Takato, "Next time, I'll try snowboarding."  
  
"I think you'll like it," said Lee, "But my butt's gonna be sore for a couple of days."  
  
"How many times did you fall?" asked Kazu.  
  
"Twelve," replied Lee, "All in the morning."  
  
"Let's go back to our rooms," said Takato, "I'm pooped." As the Tamers and their Digimon crossed the hotel parking lot, they noticed a familiar vehicle in one of the parking spots.  
  
"Is that?" started Kazu.  
  
"Can it be?" asked Ryo.  
  
"I hope not," said Takato.  
  
"It has to be," said Lee, "No one else has a motorbike like that." The Tamers quickly ran into the hotel and talked to the clerk at the front desk.  
  
"Excuse me. Did a tall man in black biker clothes and an odd-looking helmet come in through here?" asked Lee.  
  
"As a matter of fact, a fellow like him went right into the hotel shopping center," said the clerk. The Tamers said thanks and hurried off towards the hotel's underground shopping center. They looked around until finally they saw who they were looking for.  
  
"Oh no, not him again," said Ruki.  
  
"I thought we deleted him!" said Terriermon.  
  
"Well obviously, he's come back!" said Lee as they watched the dark figure slowly walk towards them.  
  
"Beelzemon," said Takato.  
  
"Why are you here?" demanded Ruki.  
  
"Why else would I be here?" replied Beelzemon.  
  
"You're here to destroy us, aren't you?" said Ryo.  
  
"Actually, I'm here to enjoy the slopes and give Behemoth a tune-up," said Beelzemon, "Enjoy the holidays while you can." And with that, he continued on his way.  
  
"That was freaky," said Kazu.  
  
"What does he want?" Takato thought out loud, "Why is he here? Does he have some other motive or is he really here for fun?"  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up. I've been really busy with school & stuff.  
  
Anyway, please send me your reviews and I'll try to post the next chapter ASAP. 


	4. Skating with Digimon

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
Last time, the Tamers decided to go skiing in the mountains. Ruki, Lee, and Ryo decided to try snowboarding. Takato took quite a spill on the bunny hill and Kazu made fun of him. Juri tried to comfort Takato and Kazu apologized. They also ran into Yamaki and Riley. Back in Nagano, the kids and their Digimon ran into Beelzemon. What's going to happen next?  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
1 Chapter 4: SKATING WITH DIGIMON  
  
Takato awoke to the sound of voices, music, and sound effects. He looked over his shoulder to see Ryo sitting on the edge of his bed watching TV wearing nothing more than a towel. "He must've just come out of the shower," thought Takato. He slowly got out of bed and headed towards the bathroom.  
  
At breakfast, the Tamers decided on the day's activities. "Today's Christmas Eve," said Lee, "Which means that tomorrow's Christmas Day."  
  
"Are we gonna stay up until midnight?" asked Kazu, eagerly.  
  
"Aren't you afraid that your Santa's not going to come if you're awake?" mocked Ruki.  
  
"Don't diss Santa!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Not so loud, Takato!" said Ryo, "Everyone will hear you!"  
  
"Honestly, does he still believe in Santa Claus?" asked Ruki.  
  
"Apparently, he does," whispered Lee, "and he's real sensitive about it. So try not to do that again."  
  
"This is pathetic," said Ruki.  
  
"Every time we go to the mall during the Christmas holidays, Takato always insists on stopping by 'Santa's Castle"," said Kazu.  
  
"We're only ten, Kazu," said Lee, "Takato still believes in Santa Claus and I don't blame him."  
  
"Everyone believes in something," said Ryo.  
  
"I believe in the Tooth Fairy," said Kenta.  
  
"The Easter bunny," said Juri.  
  
"This is ridiculous," said Ruki.  
  
"This is so lame!" said Kazu, "What if I told you that the sky was falling? Would you believe me then?"  
  
"No," answered all the kids.  
  
"Point proven," said Kazu.  
  
"You didn't prove anything," said Lee, "All you did was restate that there are some things people do believe in and some things that people don't."  
  
Kazu remained speechless. The Tamers sat around silent for a few minutes. Some chewed noiselessly on their food.  
  
"Let's go skating," said Ryo, "We have nothing better to do. I hear there's a lovely skating rink at the mall here."  
  
"That's not such a bad idea," said Lee, "Anyone who want to go skating, please raise your hand." Six hands went up; six "ayes" were heard. "The ayes have it," said Lee, "Let's go."  
  
"Takato, you didn't vote," said Juri, "Is something wrong?"  
  
"It's nothing," said Takato, turning away.  
  
The Tamers, along with Guilmon, Renamon, and Terriermon, walked through the underground pathway towards the mall. They stopped by a directory upon entering the building. Everyone could tell that they were going to be lost simply by looking at Lee and the expression on his face.  
  
"Now let's see," said Lee, "We are here." He pointed to a red dot somewhere on the map. "The skating rink is over there. We're on Floor B2. The rink is on Floor 1. The closest escalator out of order. The closest elevator should be somewhere around here."  
  
"Just take a map," said Ruki. Lee looked to his left and found a small plastic box containing several maps of the mall.  
  
"Oops. Heh heh heh. Sorry. My bad," said Lee. He picked up a map and opened it. "Elevator's this way." They walked around the mall following Lee, searching for the elevator. After about a hour or so, they finally found it.  
  
"Well that didn't take too long, did it?" said Lee. He looked at his watch and groaned.  
  
"Hey, wait a minute," said Takato, "Something's not quite right here." He walked over to a wall directory and looked at it. The red dot was in the exact same spot as the last directory map.  
  
"We've gone in one big circle!" said Ruki.  
  
"How could you have not known that the elevator was across from us?" asked Ryo.  
  
"It was too crowded to see anything," said Lee.  
  
"Let's just get to the rink," said Kazu, "I hear the rink is so big, that they have one side for normal skaters and the other side for hockey. Oh man, I could just see myself now." Kazu stood there imagining himself as a pro hockey star in the NHL. His thoughts were interrupted by Lee.  
  
"Let's just go," said Lee.  
  
"What's wrong, Takato?" asked Juri. Takato had stayed silent for quite some time now.  
  
"Nothing," said Takato. He looked down as his shoes as they walked, trying to avoid looking at anyone. True to Kazu's word, when the Tamers reached the skating rink, they saw that it WAS gigantic and that it WAS divided into two sections, one for skating and one for hockey.  
  
"You were right, Kazu," said Kenta.  
  
"Aren't I always?" boasted Kazu.  
  
"No," said the others minus Takato. The Tamers walked over to the rink and paid for their admission. Then they walked over to the rental counter. Takato sort of lagged behind.  
  
"I'll just stay back here and watch you guys," said Takato.  
  
"You're coming too, Takato," said Kazu and grabbed Takato's wrist and dragged him over to the rental counter, "Size 1 for adults."  
  
"I'll take a Size 2 for adults," said Lee.  
  
"I'll take the same as him," said Ruki, gesturing towards Lee.  
  
"Size 5 kids," said Kenta.  
  
"I'll take a size 2 for adults," said Ryo.  
  
"Takato, what size do you wear?" asked Juri.  
  
"Whatever," replied Takato.  
  
"We'll each take a size 6 for kids," said Juri.  
  
The Tamers got their skates and then sat down on the benches to put them on. Rows of small lockers for shoes lined the walls, as well as ran between each row of benches. Everyone was in a hurry to put on his or her skates, but Takato didn't seem all that enthusiastic about it.  
  
In a few minutes, the Tamers were out on the ice. Guilmon, Renamon, and Terriermon watched them from the shadows while Cyberdramon hovered over the skylight. Lee and Ruki skated hand in hand. Kazu was in a hurry to warm up before joining the hockey game that was going on on the other side of the rink. Kenta had a shaky start, but in about five minutes, he was skating back and forth along the ice. Juri looked over at Takato and noticed that he was hanging onto the side. She skated over to him.  
  
"What's wrong, Takato?" she asked him.  
  
"It's nothing," said Takato. He looked really nervous and his legs were shaking.  
  
"I know something's wrong, Takato," said Juri, "What is it?"  
  
"It's nothing," repeated Takato.  
  
"Takato!" said Juri.  
  
"Alright!" screamed Takato, "I can't skate! I don't know how to skate and I never learned how to!"  
  
"Why didn't you just say so, Takato?" asked Juri.  
  
"I though you'd all make fun of me," said Takato, "That's why I didn't say anything."  
  
"Takato, if you're so afraid, couldn't you have talked to me at least?" asked Juri, "Come on. I'll teach you how to skate." She took Takato's hand and moved towards the center of the rink. Takato didn't budge. His arm was wrapped around the side in a death grip. "Takato, let go," said Juri.  
  
"No," said Takato. Lee & Ruki sated over to them.  
  
"What's going on here?" asked Lee.  
  
"Takato can't skate and I'm trying to teach him how to. But he won't let go of the side," said Juri.  
  
"Allow me," said Ruki. She grabbed Takato's wrist and squeezed until he cried out in pain and let go of the side.  
  
"Now follow me, Takato," said Juri as she dragged Takato out onto the ice.  
  
"NO!" screamed Takato, " NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!"  
  
"Try not to worry, Takato!" shouted Lee as he tried to over power Takato's screaming, "Think about happy things! Try not to think about falling! TRY BREATHING!" Takato took in a deep breath and continued screaming. Lee signed and shook his head.  
  
"Are you scared, Takato?" asked Juri.  
  
"YES!" screamed Takato.  
  
"I'll be right back," said Lee. He skated off and returned with a chair. "Here, Takato. Hold on to this." Takato let go of Juri and sat down on the chair.  
  
"He said hold on. Not sit down," said Ruki. Reluctantly, Takato slowly got up and turned around so that he faced the chair. Lee turned it around and Takato grasped onto the back of the chair.  
  
"Now try to push yourself forward," said Lee. Takato slid one skate against the ice and pushed himself forward. "Good. Now try again," said Lee. Takato pushed off with his other foot.  
  
"How did I do?" asked Takato.  
  
"Try opening your eyes," said Lee. Takato did so. His eyes went wide when he saw that he was standing in the middle of the ice holding onto the back of a chair.  
  
"Help!" he squeaked. Kazu skated up to them.  
  
"Just do how I did it," he said. And with that, he kicked away the chair, leaving Takato unsupported in the middle of the ice.  
  
"HELP ME!" screamed Takato.  
  
"Open your eyes, Takato!" said Ryo, "Look! You're skating." Takato opened his eyes. True to Ryo's word, he was gliding smoothly across the ice.  
  
"You're doing it Takato!" called Lee.  
  
"You're skating!" shouted Kenta.  
  
"Yeah! I'm skating!" cheered Takato.  
  
"Takato!" shouted Juri, "Watch out for that..." Too late. Takato got knocked over by a couple of teenagers.  
  
"Watch where you're going, kid!" said one of the teens.  
  
"I-I-I'm sorry," said Takato as he backed away.  
  
"Sorry isn't going to cut it," said the other teen. He picked up Takato by his collar and drew back his fist.  
  
"Hey! Lay off him!" shouted Lee as he skated up to them.  
  
"You friends with this punk?" asked the first teen.  
  
"As a matter of fact, yes," said Lee.  
  
"Same here," said Ryo, Kazu, and Kenta as they skidded to a stop next to Lee.  
  
"Guess we'll have to teach these little punks a lesson," said the second teen.  
  
"The only ones who're going to be taught a lesson is you two blockheads," said Ruki as she skated up between the other Tamers. Takato took this opportunity to escape. He wriggled out of his blue hooded T-sweatshirt & skated away. He could feel the cold air of the ice through his white T- shirt.  
  
"Hey! He's getting away!" shouted the first teen. But before he could do anything, Ruki swept her foot under his and knocked him down. Then she punched the other teen hard in the stomach, causing him to drop down on the first teen.  
  
"That's no ordinary girl," said the second teen, "That's Xena!"  
  
"You don't want to mess with the Digimon Queen," said Lee, "She is one tough woman."  
  
"Takato, are you okay?" asked Juri as soon as she caught up with him.  
  
"Yeah," replied Takato, "I'm feeling a little cold, but I'm okay. AH-CHOO!"  
  
"Takato, you skated!" said Juri. Takato looked up and faces Juri.  
  
"I did?" he asked, flatly. He looked back to where the teens and his hooded T-sweatshirt lay on the ice. "I guess I did!" he laughed at his own accidental success.  
  
Takato must have laughed a little too hard, because he leaned too far back and accidentally slipped and fell onto the ice.  
  
"Are you okay, Takato?" asked Juri. Instead of crying out loud in pain with tears streaming down his eyes, Takato merely laughed.  
  
Suddenly, a thick cloud of fog appears in the middle of the rink. "It's a Digital Field," said Lee, "Everyone! Get off the ice!" He dug into his vest and pulled out his sunglasses.  
  
"Juri, get off the ice," said Takato, "It's for your safety. Leomon's not here to help ,so you better get away."  
  
"Okay. Be careful, Takato," said Juri. She grabbed Kazu and Kenta by the arms and dragged them off the ice.  
  
"Here, Gogglehead," said Ruki and put Takato's hooded T-sweatshirt in his hands. Takato thanked Ruki and pulled it back over his head. By the time he finished getting his arms through the sleeves, Ruki had already put on her sunglasses and gone into the Digital Field.  
  
"Hey! Wait for me!" called Takato as he pulled his goggles over his eyes and entered the Digital Field with Guilmon right behind him. Upon entering, he found Lee and Ruki with Terriermon and Renamon. Ryo was there with them along with Cyberdramon.  
  
"Come out and show yourself," said Ruki.  
  
"Over there!" called Takato, pointing with his right finger. Every turned looked in the direction that Takato was pointing in. Amidst the thickest part of the fog, a Digimon in white and blue armor with a small white cape stood up from a kneeling position. Sharp blades were attached to the soles of his blue boots.  
  
"Let's get the info on this guys," said Ruki as the Digimon's profile came up, "Rinkmon. An Armored Digimon. Data type. His attacks are Spinning Cutter and Quadruple Storm."  
  
"Be careful out there, Terriermon," said Lee after checking Rinkmon's profile on his D-Arc, "The data says that he's the fastest Digimon ever."  
  
"Momentai," said Terriermon.  
  
Ruki and Lee removed their sunglasses while Takato lifted his goggles off his face. Ruki pulled out a card from her cardholder. "Walk all over him, Renamon," said Ruki. Renamon jumped up into the air and hovered for a moment above Rinkmon's head.  
  
"DIAMOND STORM!" she shouted. The razor-sharp crystals rained down on Rinkmon. When the dust cleared, Rinkmon was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Did you get him?" asked Terriermon. Rinkmon suddenly appeared behind Renamon and struck her in the back with his fist. "Guess not," said Terriermon. He leapt off Lee's head and entered the battle.  
  
"He's going to need some help," said Lee as he took out a card, "He's going to need extra speed. DIGIMODIFY! SPEED ACTIVATE!" Terriermon suddenly found himself running faster than before.  
  
"Time to teach this bad boy a lesson in skating!" said Terriermon, "BUNNY BLAST!" Unfortunately for Terriermon, Rinkmon used the razor-sharp blades on his arms to deflect all the shots.  
  
"Nothing seems to be working," said Ruki.  
  
"Help him, Cyberdramon!" said Ryo. Cyberdramon leapt into the heart of the battle and rammed into Rinkmon.  
  
Or at least, he attempted to. Rinkmon moved away faster than anyone could follow (much in the way the people in DBZ disappear & reappear). He reappeared behind both Terriermon and Cyberdramon.  
  
"ERASE CLAW!" shouted Cyberdramon.  
  
"BUNNY BLAST!" shouted Terriermon. Rinkmon dodged the attacks with ease. He suddenly skated straight for the two Digimon. Without warning, he leapt onto one skate and started spinning rapidly. The blades on his arms gleamed in the light.  
  
"Get out of there!" shouted Ryo.  
  
"SPINNING CUTTER!" shouted Rinkmon. He blazed past Terriermon and Cyberdramon, slashing them both as he passed. The two Digimon fell to the ice.  
  
"I guess it's up to us now," said Takato, "Go get him, Guilmon!"  
  
"Ready, set, and go!" said Guilmon. And with that, he ran towards Rinkmon, only to find that he wasn't going anywhere.  
  
"Oh no. His feet are sliding on the ice," said Takato, "What am I going to do?"  
  
"Takato!" called Kazu from outside the Digital Field, "Take this card I made! I should help!" he threw the card into the Digital Field and Takato caught it. It showed a picture of a pair of hockey skates on the front.  
  
"Kazu! This card isn't real! It won't work!" shouted Takato.  
  
"His fake Blue Card did that one time," reminded Lee.  
  
"Good point," said Takato, "Okay, here goes nothing! DIGIMODIFY! ICE HOCKEY SKATES ACTIVATE!" Surprisingly, the card actually worked. Hockey skates appeared on Guilmon's feet. "Thanks Kazu! I owe you!" called Takato.  
  
"You owe me six!" called back Kazu.  
  
"Get him, Guilmon!" said Takato. Guilmon went into battle mode and growled. He skated straight at Rinkmon, who eagerly waited for him.  
  
"PYRO SPHERE!" shouted Guilmon. Rinkmon dodged the fireball with great ease.  
  
"DIGIMODIFY! HYPERSPEED ACTIVATE!" shouted Takato. Guilmon suddenly picked up great speed and charged at Rinkmon with full force.  
  
"PYRO SPHERE!" he shouted. His blasts moved much more quickly than before. Rinkmon had some more trouble dodging these blasts than that last time. He was able to evade most of them, but got struck by one of them.  
  
"Not bad," said Rinkmon, "But playtime's over. SPINNING CUTTER!" he slashed Guilmon badly.  
  
"This looks bad," said Culumon.  
  
"Culumon! You're here!" said Lee, "Takato! We've got a chance! At least the ceiling above the rink is high enough!"  
  
"Right!" said Takato and pulled out a card, "DIGIMODIFY! DIGIVOLUTION ACTIVATE!" The triangular diagram on Culumon's forehead began to glow.  
  
1.1 DIGIVOLUTION  
  
1.2 Guilmon Digivolve to...GROWMON!  
  
Growmon towered above Rinkmon, but the speedy Digimon was not so easily intimidated. "You think he can stop me?" asked Rinkmon, "You must be dreaming! SPINNING CUTTER!"  
  
"DRAGON SLASH!" countered Growmon. He blocked all of Rinkmon's blows.  
  
"Take this!" shouted Rinkmon and slashed with his right blade. Growmon blocked with his left. Rinkmon then slashed with his left and Growmon blocked with his right. Before they knew it, the two Digimon found themselves locked in each other's grasp.  
  
"Now Growmon!" cried Takato.  
  
"PYRO BLASTER!" shouted Growmon. His attack engulfed Rinkmon whole.  
  
"NO! This can't be!" shouted Rinkmon in disbelief, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" his body was deleted and Growmon absorbed his data.  
  
"He did it!" said Ryo as the Digital Field dissipated. They looked around and noticed how many people were staring at them. it didn't take them long to realize that they were really staring at Growmon.  
  
"Just go back to your daily lives, citizens!" said Takato, trying to act as if the battle with Rinkmon hadn't actually happened, "Just ignore the giant robot dinosaur!"  
  
"It doesn't look like a robot," said one person. The Tamers quickly returned their skates and ran out of the mall with their Digimon.  
  
"How are we going to hide Growmon until he De-Digivolves?" asked Takato.  
  
"I'll work on that!" said Lee as they continued running. They never saw Beelzemon watching them as they ran off.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
I know it's now past Christmas, but still.  
  
Please read and send me your reviews. I'll try to get the next chapter up ASAP. 


	5. The Presence of Presents

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
Last time, the Tamers decided to go skating. Takato didn't know how to skate at first, but the other helped him. Next, Rinkmon appeared and completely spoiled the Tamers' fun. It wasn't until Takato used a card to make Guilmon Digivolve into Growmon and totally fried that speedy Digimon. Let's hope nothing else spoils their fun.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
Chapter 5: THE PRESENCE OF PRESENTS  
  
"I'm glad we got back without too much trouble," said Ryo.  
  
"Yeah," said Takato, "But we at least got Growmon to change back into Guilmon."  
  
"Just eat your dinner and stop blabbering," said Ruki. Takato got up from his seat and walked over to the buffet to get some more food.  
  
"Tomorrow's Christmas day," thought Takato as he filled his plate, " Tomorrow's Christmas day. TOMORROW'S CHIRSTMAS DAY!"  
  
"I wonder what he's all excited about?" asked Kazu.  
  
"Isn't it obvious?" asked Lee, "Tomorrow's Christmas, so of course Takato's happy about it. Aren't we all?"  
  
"So who's going to stay up until midnight?" asked Ryo. Everyone who was sitting at the table raised their hands. When Takato returned, Ryo asked him if he were going to stay up until midnight.  
  
"Sata won't come if we stay up all night," said Takato.  
  
"Santa will drop your presents at your house, not here," said Juri.  
  
"But he won't if I stay wake all night," said Takato.  
  
"But you're not," said Ryo, "You're just staying up until just past midnight."  
  
"Good point there," said Takato. He sat down and ate his food.  
  
"We should all be together in one place," said Kazu, "How about our room?"  
  
"We've been in there before," said Lee, "It stinks and your clothes are all over the floor, beds, and furniture."  
  
"How about our room?" suggested Ryo.  
  
"That sounds good," said Lee.  
  
"Oh no!" said Takato, "Not our room! I don't want Kazu to go through my underwear!"  
  
"You threw it in my face on that camping trip!" said Kazu.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did too!" Kazu yelled back.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Boys, boys, boys! Can't you two just get over it?" asked Lee.  
  
"He started it!" whined Takato.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Takato.  
  
"Did not!" yelled Kazu.  
  
"Did too!" yelled Takato.  
  
"This is ridiculous," said Ruki, "Renamon."  
  
"With pleasure," said Renamon.  
  
"Cyberdramon?" said Ryo.  
  
"I'll help her," said Cyberdramon. He walks over to the two boys and picked up Kazu by his collar. Renamon did the same with Takato.  
  
"I think it's time that these two boys had a little timeout," said Renamon.  
  
"Are you in trouble, Takato?" asked Guilmon. He remembered how Takato's mother said the same thing to Takato whenever he was in trouble.  
  
"Takato, you'd better be nice or you'll find a big lump of coal in your stocking when you get home," warned Lee, knowing full well that this would surely calm Takato down. To Lee's expectations, it did. Takato stopped yelling and kicking around and Renamon was able to put him down. Kazu, on the other hand, wasn't going to be calmed that easily. Fortunately, Ruki had the solution. She walked right up to Kazu and punched him in the nuts. Cyberdramon let go of Kazu and the boy sank to he floor.  
  
"Well, now that that's all been settled, let's all go get ready," said Lee, "Oh, and bring your presents over, too." Takato decided that if they were going to have their mini-party in their room, he had best go get things cleaned up. Takato got up from his chair and walked over to the elevator with Guilmon right behind him.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
"I still don't like the idea of the others coming over to our room for half the night," said Takato from the shower.  
  
"It won't be that bad," said Lee.  
  
"It could be," said Takato, "I mean, they're all going to see me in my pajamas."  
  
"Don't tell you're scared," said Lee as he finished combing his hair.  
  
"Come on, Takato. Lighten up," said Ryo. Takato shut off the water and dried himself with a towel. He quickly pulled on his pajamas and grabbed the hairdryer. About that time, there was a knock at the door. Lee answered it.  
  
"Glad you could come, Ruki," he said.  
  
"Hello, Takato," said Juri. Takato blushed with embarrassment. Juri was standing in front of him fully dressed and there he was, wearing only his pajamas. He felt really awkward.  
  
"Just pretend it's nothing more than a regular sleepover with regular friends," thought Takato as he exited the bathroom. He slowly walked over to his bed and sat down. He saw that Juri was sitting at its foot. "Just my luck," he thought. He slipped under the covers and pulled them over his head.  
  
"You're not going to sleep before midnight. Are you, Takato?" asked Juri.  
  
"Just try me," said Takato from under the covers. Juri reached down and yanked the covers off Takato's bed, leaving the boy lying on his back in his pajamas.  
  
"And they just HAD to be yellow pajamas!" thought Takato, "This is embarrassing." He placed his hands over his face and blushed his guts out.  
  
"Looks like someone's having a bad night," said a voice. Takato opened his eyes to see Kazu and Kenta standing near the TV.  
  
"Leave me alone," said Takato.  
  
"Gee. Kenta, do you wonder why Takato's pajamas are yellow?" asked Kazu.  
  
"I knew it! I knew that Kazu was going to comment on my pajamas!" thought Takato, "He's going to say the color is supposed to hide anything in case I ever wet the bed."  
  
"It's because the color will hide anything if he ever wets the bed!" said Kazu, laughing.  
  
"Check," thought Takato. He turned over onto his stomach and pulled a pillow over his head. Juri thought she had just heard him moan.  
  
"Come on, Takato," said Juri, "If it makes you feel any better, I can let you open the present I got for you." Takato immediately pulled the pillow off his head and looked at Juri.  
  
"Seriously?" he asked.  
  
Juri reached into the bag she had brought along and took out a box, which was covered with bright blue wrapping paper and topped with a red bow. There was a card taped to the top right next to the bow. Takato took the present and plucked the card off the top. He opened it and read what was inside.  
  
"Merry Christmas, Takato. I hope you like your present. It'll help you keep track of things." -Juri.  
  
Takato took off the bow and slowly undid the wrapping paper. His hands shook a little as he did so. The others watched him carefully. What Takato saw took his breath away.  
  
"That is nice," said Lee.  
  
"Well, Takato. Do you like it?" asked Juri.  
  
"I love it, Juri. It's beautiful," said Takato. He reached into the box and slowly pulled out a shining silver watch. The second hand ticked rhythmically and steadily. Takato noticed that it was set for Tokyo time. The face of the clock was gold with little white numbers. There was a small meter just below the center of the watch with several numbers. Takato guessed that it was the date.  
  
"Well, try it on. See if it fits!" said Ryo. Takato slipped the watch onto his left wrist and fastened it. It fit perfectly and it looked nice on his wrist, too.  
  
"Thank you, Juri," said Takato. He leaned over and gave Juri a thank you hug without even giving a thought that everyone was watching them.  
  
"Ugh! Too much love in this room for my taste," said Kazu. He made gagging sounds and pointed to the back of his mouth while holding his throat with his other hand.  
  
"Isn't that sweet," said Lee.  
  
"Takato and Juri sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G," sang Terriermon.  
  
"Knock it off, Terriermon," said Lee.  
  
"What?! What?!" asked Terriermon.  
  
"That's rude," scolded Lee. Ryo crawled over to Lee's side of the bed, grabbed the remote, and turned on the TV.  
  
"How much time have we got until midnight?" asked Ryo, "Takato! Why don't you tell us with your new watch?"  
  
"Okay," said Takato. He lifted his wrist and pulled back his sleeve. "We've still got another five hours."  
  
"So let's just settle down and watch something until then," said Ryo as he flipped through the channels.  
  
"Give me that remote," said Terriermon, "I can flip through channels faster than that." And with that, he grabbed the remote from Ryo's hand and began to flip through the channels at lightning speed. Everyone only had a split second to see what was on one channel before Terriermon switched to the next one.  
  
"Slow down!" said Kenta.  
  
"I can't!" said Terriermon, "Once I go into hyperdrive, I can't stop!"  
  
"Please excuse me while I go have a seizure," said Lee.  
  
"Give me that stupid remote," said Ruki. She grabbed the remote from Terriermon and flipped through the channels as a slower speed.  
  
"STOP!" cried Ryo, "This channel's showing 'The Phantom Menace'!"  
  
"The Star Wars movie?" asked Kenta.  
  
"Cool! Let's watch!" said Takato.  
  
"All those in favor," said Lee. Seven human hands went up. It was a unanimous vote.  
  
"It's decided," said Lee, "Who brought the party kit?"  
  
"Got it," said Ruki. She reached into a shopping bag and pulled out a rolled up cloth. She spread it out on the bed and on it were bags of chips, pretzels, and Chee-tos, as well as cans of pop/soda (I'm Canadian, so I say pop) and several containers of dip.  
  
"Did anyone bring the games?" asked Lee, "I brought chess."  
  
"I brought Twister," said Takato.  
  
"I brought along Yahtzee," said Kenta. (Did I spell that correctly?)  
  
"Monopoly," said Ryo.  
  
"Connect Four," said Kazu.  
  
"Perfection," said Juri.  
  
"Something's missing," said Ruki, "I get the feeling that everyone brought at least one additional game." The Tamers each reached behind themselves and pulled out a stack of cards.  
  
"Digimon Card Game," they all said in unison.  
  
The Tamers spent the next several hours playing games board games, watching TV, eating snacks, and battling each other with their cards. Of course, nobody could beat Ryo.  
  
"Left hand, red," called Ryo. Immediately, Takato, Juri, Lee, and Ruki (all of whom were in awkward positions) tried to move their left hands over the row of red dots. Takato found himself right overtop of Juri. It was then that he suddenly realized that he had forgotten to tuck in his pajama top in before playing. He looked down at himself and saw that the waistband of his boxers was visible. This was all interrupted when they heard the beginning of "Duel of the Fates" on the TV. Everyone collapsed and rushed over to the TV. This was the Tamers' favorite part of the movie. They watched as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Qui-Gon Jinn dueled with Darth Maul. Kazu and Kenta began jumping on the beds when Anakin flew through space in a Naboo Starfighter.  
  
"That was good," said Ryo as soon as the movie was finished, "How much time have we got?"  
  
"Still another two and a half hours," said Takato.  
  
"Let's take a look and see what else is on," said Lee. He picked up the remote and flipped through the channels.  
  
"Hey, look! 'Princess Mononoke!" said Kazu.  
  
"All those in favor," said Lee. Seven hands went up. It was another unanimous vote.  
  
Again, the Tamers spent the next several hours watching TV, eating food, and playing games. When the movie was over, Takato looked at his watch. "We've still got three minutes left," he said.  
  
"Time to turn to the news," said Lee. He flipped through the channels until he came up to a news broadcast.  
  
"It's now three minutes until midnight," said the newscaster, "And here we are live at the Tokyo Christmas parade."  
  
"Clock's ticking," said Takato. They waited for two more minutes. Then the Tamers got out all their Christmas presents.  
  
"Forty seconds," said Takato, "This is going to be great!"  
  
"It's coming," said Lee.  
  
"Thirty seconds!" said Takato. His excitement was rising. "Twenty seconds!"  
  
"A little further," said Kazu.  
  
"Get ready for the countdown!" said Takato, "Start now!"  
  
the Tamers began the countdown, "Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven! Six! Five! Four! Three! Two! One! MERRY CHRISTMAS!" The Tamers and their Digimon cheered and sang Christmas carols. They began to exchange gifts.  
  
"Merry Christmas, Ruki," said Lee as he handed Ruki a large package, "I hope you like it." Ruki undid the wrapping paper and looked inside.  
  
"A kick-boxing bag?" she asked, "You know what I like. Here." She handed Lee a large box, which he unwrapped immediately.  
  
"A DVD player!" exclaimed Lee.  
  
"Hey, Ryo! Here!" said Kazu. Ryo excitedly opened his present.  
  
"A PS2!" he said, "Thanks, Kazu. Hey, Takato! I got something for ya!"  
  
"Thanks," said Takato and opened Ryo's present, "A Nintendo GameCube! Thanks, Ryo! Here, Lee!" Lee unwrapped Takato's present and took out a portable CD player.  
  
"Nice," said Lee, "Oh! And you even got me that CD I wanted! Thanks, Takato!"  
  
"And Ruki, here," said Takato. Ruki tore off the wrapping paper and took out a rock CD. She thanked him and put it away.  
  
"Takato, do you have anything for me?" asked Juri.  
  
"As a matter of fact, I do," said Takato. He took out the present he had been hiding behind his back and gave it to Juri. Juri opened her present and gasped. Inside was a golden locket on a small chain.  
  
"Do you like it?" asked Takato.  
  
"I love it!" said Juri.  
  
"Here. Let me help you put it on," said Takato. He moved behind Juri and placed the chain around her neck. He fastened it at the back and then returned to Juri's side. After a half-hour of exchanging gifts, the Tamers decided that it was time for bed.  
  
"Good night, Takato," said Juri, "Thank you for the locket."  
  
"Good night, Juri," said Takato, "Thanks again for the watch." Juri gave Takato a quick peck on the cheek before returning to her room.  
  
"That was a lot of fun, wasn't it?" said Lee.  
  
"Yep!" said Takato, "Now for my presents back home." Takato quickly brushed his teeth and went to the bathroom before climbing into bed. "Good night, everyone. See you in the morning."  
  
"good night, Takato," said Ryo and Lee.  
  
"night-night," Takato," said Guilmon.  
  
"Merry Christmas, Guilmon," said Takato.  
  
"Merry Christmas, Takato," said Guilmon. The two of them fell fast asleep.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
I know that this seemed more like New Year's than Christmas.  
  
Anyway, please read and send me your reviews. 


	6. Takato Takes a Spill

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
Last time, the Tamers stayed up until after midnight celebrating Christmas. Everyone got good gifts and each was happy with what he or she got.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
Chapter 6: TAKATO TAKES A SPILL  
  
Takato woke up feeling refreshed and ready for a new day. The party last night had been a blast. He looked over his shoulder and saw Lee and Ryo were still asleep. "We should go to the slope again, today," thought Takato, "This time, I'll try snowboarding. And that's final!" He picked up his watch from the nightstand and looked at it. It read 11:00 a.m. Takato quickly got up, brushed his teeth, combed his hair, changed, etc, etc, etc. Finally, he walked over to Ryo & Lee's bed.  
  
"HEY GUYS! Rise and shine!" yelled Takato. Lee and Ryo practically jumped out of the skins.  
  
"Takato! Can you keep it down?" said Lee, "We're trying to sleep."  
  
"What time is it anyway?" asked Ryo.  
  
"11:15 in the morning," said Takato, "I wanna go snowboarding!"  
  
"Can't we just get some extra sleep?" asked Lee.  
  
"How can you even think about sleeping?!" asked Takato.  
  
"We're still tired," said Ryo.  
  
"Okay then," said Takato, "You leave me no choice. Guilmon!"  
  
"What is it, Takato?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"I think Lee and Ryo are hiding some bread somewhere in their bed," said Takato, tauntingly. Guilmon immediately jumped onto Ryo and Lee's bed and began searching. The two boys yelled when Guilmon began searching through their pajamas.  
  
"I hate strip-search," said Lee, "Okay! Okay! We're up! We're up!"  
  
"Down, Guilmon. There's no bread here," said Takato.  
  
At breakfast, the Tamers decided on whether or not to go to the slope again. "Takato's really gung ho about the whole thing," said Lee.  
  
"I'd love to see Takato on a snowboard," said Kazu.  
  
"I can be fairly good on a snowboard! Just watch me!" said Takato.  
  
"I think we should all go to the skiing again," said Juri.  
  
"All those in favor," said Lee. Eleven hands went up. It was a unanimous vote.  
  
"It's agreed," said Ryo, "When does the bus leave for the slope?"  
  
"In five minutes," said Lee.  
  
"Five minutes?! That doesn't give us a lot of time!" said Takato. The Tamers quickly left the restaurant and went upstairs to grab their things. Carrying their gear under their arms, they were able to make it to the bus just before it left.  
  
"Whew! We made it!" said Takato.  
  
"Let's put our things on," said Lee. For the next seven minutes, the Tamers donned their ski gear. About another fifty-three minutes, they arrived at the ski hill.  
  
"First things first," said Lee. They walked over to the lodge and checked in. they got the same room as the one they had before. The dropped off their backpacks and headed off towards the rental shop.  
  
"Takato! Ski boots are over here!" said Kazu.  
  
"I'm not going skiing," said Takato, "I'm going snowboarding!" Takato, Ruki, and Lee fastened on their snowboard boots and walked off towards the rental counter.  
  
"Hey, where's Ryo?" asked Kenta.  
  
"He's going to be snowblading!" called Takato.  
  
"What's snowblading?" asked Juri.  
  
"It's kinda like skiing, but with shorter skis and no poles," said Lee. Even with his explanation, the others were still confused about what snowblading was. That was until they saw Ryo with his snowblades, which really were like mini-skis.  
  
"They're easy to pack, too," said Ryo, "But you have to be really good because they're REALLY fast." Juri, Kazu, and Kenta snapped on their skis while Ryo snapped on his snowblades.  
  
"This is it," said Takato as he, Ruki, and Lee fastened their left legs to their snowboards. "To the bunny hill!"  
  
"Be careful, Takato," said Lee, "This is your first time on a snowboard, so you're bound to fall several times."  
  
"I remember when we came here last time," said Takato, "You fell a dozen times."  
  
"My butt is STILL sore," said Lee, pounding it with his fist.  
  
Takato carefully took hold of the towrope and zoomed up the hill. Knowing full well that this was his first time, he decided to stop a quarter up the hill. "This looks like a good starting point," said Takato.  
  
"I think so, too," said Lee, "Remember Takato, this is the real thing. It's nothing like those video games back at the arcade at home."  
  
"I know," said Takato, "It's fairly much the same except you might actually get hurt." He strapped his other foot to his board and took off. His descent went fairly smooth, but when he reached the bottom, he fell.  
  
"Maybe we should teach you some of the basics first," said Lee when he stopped net to Takato and helped him up.  
  
"Okay," said Takato.  
  
"Now, the first thing you need to know is how to balance on your board correctly," said Lee, "I suggest putting less weight on your front foot and more and your back foot. It'll give you more maneuverability. To balance out your sides, hold your arms out like this. Think of snowboarding as skateboarding, but with no wheels and you're going on snow, not concrete."  
  
"Okay," said Takato. He tried to follow Lee's example.  
  
"Watch out!" called Ryo. He zipped by on his snowblades faster than anyone's eyes could follow. "Pretty exciting, isn't it?"  
  
"RYO!" shotued Lee, "Watch out for that..." Too late. Ryo crashed right into one of the large metal support poles used for the chair lift.  
  
"Ouchie," said Takato, "That has to hurt."  
  
"Yeah, I know," said Kazu, "MEDIC!" Ryo slowly got up.  
  
"Maybe I should go inside and rest up," he said.  
  
"I think that's a good idea," said Lee. Ryo removed his snowblades and walked off to the lodge.  
  
"Somehow, I get the feeling that he hurt himself in another place other than his face," said Takato, "Did you see the way he was walking?"  
  
"I did," said Lee, "It's going to take some time for him to recover."  
  
"Did what I thing just happened happen?" asked Kenta.  
  
"Yes, Kenta," said Lee, "Ryo got hit in the nuts."  
  
"Can we please get back to my snowboarding lesson?" asked Takato.  
  
"Oh right. Sorry, Takato," said Lee. He continued teaching Takato some more of the basics of snowboarding. By the time they were done on the ground, they went halfway up the bunny hill. Surprisingly, Takato did fairly well and arrived at the foot of the hill smoothly.  
  
"I did it!" said Takato.  
  
"You're getting it," said Lee, "Just keep on practicing." Takato smiled. He quickly went back to the towrope and went up the hill. This time, he went higher. Takato spent the whole morning and the first two hours of the afternoon practicing on the bunny hill. He decided to take the next step and go on one of the green circle trails. But he decided to talk to Lee about it first.  
  
"I'd better come and watch you first," said the silver-eyed boy. Lee accompanied Takato to the chair lift, up the hill, all the way to Takato's choice of trail.  
  
"Here we are," said Takato.  
  
"This is it?" asked Lee.  
  
"Darn right it is," said Takato.  
  
"You certainly should confident," said Lee.  
  
"I know," said Takato with a smile.  
  
"Hey guys. What's shaking?" asked a voice. Takato and Lee looked behind themselves and saw Kazu standing there. "Watch and be amazed."  
  
"Out of the way, visor-boy!" said Ruki and knocked Kazu down as she went down the slope.  
  
"See, Takato?" asked Lee, "Just like that."  
  
"That doesn't look too hard," said Takato. He strapped on his right foot and, with Lee to give him a jump-start, he was off. Takato was scared at first, but only at first. He slowly regained his confidence as he went down the slope. By the time he reached the bottom, he was so eager to go back up that he immediately unstrapped his foot and headed off towards the chair lift without Lee. Takato began to enjoy the freedom of snowboarding more and more. Firstly, he could go to areas that were designated only for snowboarders. Secondly, he didn't have to worry about poles. Thirdly, he enjoyed the newfound speed the snowboard provided for him.  
  
"I am Matsuda Takato," cried Takato, "Champion of the world!" In his head, Takato could hear crowds cheering and cameras clicking and reporters asking him questions.  
  
""SHUT UP!" someone yelled at Takato.  
  
"You'll have to excuse my friend," said Lee to that person, "My friend just learned how to snowboard today, so he's feeling really cocky."  
  
At lunch, the Tamers sat around in their private room and talked about what they did so far. Even Ryo, who had a large pack of ice over his groin, was there too, sitting on the couch eating his lunch. "So, what did you do so far, Ruki?" asked Lee.  
  
"I spent the whole time snowboarding," answered Ruki.  
  
"Okay, how about Kazu and Kenta?" said Lee.  
  
"We skied," said Kenta.  
  
"I went on a few black diamond trails," said Kazu.  
  
"Kazu, you only went on one black diamond trail," said Kenta, "After that, you stuck with green circles and blue squares."  
  
"Couldn't handle it, could he?" asked Lee.  
  
"No, he couldn't," said Kenta.  
  
"You all know what happened to me," said Ryo.  
  
"Does it still hurt?" asked Takato.  
  
"Now that you mention it, it doesn't," said Ryo, "I'VE RECOVERED!" He stood up a little too quickly and then he yelped in pain. "No, it still hurts."  
  
"So what's everyone going to do for the rest of the afternoon?" asked Lee.  
  
"I'm going on the halfpipe," said Ruki.  
  
"I'm going to go on that towards the end of the day!" said Takato. Everyone just stared at him.  
  
"Maybe you should wait," said Lee, "It's for your own good. I had to practice several months before I could master the snowboard well enough to go on the halfpipe."  
  
"And what will happen to me if something happens to you?" asked Guilmon.  
  
"Good point," said Takato, "Okay, I'll just go the designated snowboarding areas."  
  
"Now that sounds more realistic," said Lee.  
  
"I'm going back out there," said Ryo, "There's nothing good to watch on TV right now, anyway."  
  
"Are you sure you're feeling good enough to continue snowblading?" asked Lee.  
  
"I'm better," said Ryo, "A little sore, but not too much."  
  
"If you say so," said Lee, "Okay, everyone! Listen up! We still have lots of time. We meet back at the rental shop at 4:30. Everyone clear on that?"  
  
"Yes, Sir!" said all the others, except for Ruki, who was used to hearing Lee talk in this tone.  
  
The rest of the day seemed to go by fairly well. Takato lived up to his word, and even went snowboarding on some blue square trails. It seemed like nothing could go wrong. Not far away, Lee and Ruki watched Takato as he snowboarded.  
  
"He's improved a lot," said Lee.  
  
"He's okay," said Ruki. A teenager suddenly passed in front of Takato on his snowboard.  
  
"Watch it, kid!" said the teen and went off. His suddenly barging caused Takato to lose his balance. The blond-haired boy began to sway back and forth and fell backwards, using his arms to help break his fall. He screamed out in pain as he landed.  
  
"TAKATO!" shouted Ruki and Lee. They quickly snowboarded down to Takato, who seemed to be okay. However, one close look and Lee could tell that he was not okay. Tears were streaming down his face and Lee could see that there was something wrong with Takato that was more than just a sore butt.  
  
"My God! He's twisted his wrist!" said Lee. It was freaky. Takato's left hand was turned so that it didn't even look real. "Takato needs medical attention immediately!" said Lee.  
  
"I'll go get help!" said Ruki. She strapped her foot back onto her snowboard and took off towards the first aid office.  
  
"Just hold on, Takato," said Lee. A few minutes later, a snowmobile with a Red Cross on it arrived. They put Takato on the back and drove him off the slope. By then, everyone had heard about Takato's accident and were already at the first aid office. After a few minutes, the medical examiner came into the waiting room.  
  
"Your friend needs to go to the hospital," he said, "We suspect he's broken some bones."  
  
"Okay, people. Let's think this out calmly," said Lee, "The medical examiner will call for an ambulance. In the meantime, we return everything, and grab the Digimon. I'll go with Takato in the ambulance. The rest of you will take the bus back to the hotel and meet us at the hospital. Ruki, I'm trusting you to make sure everyone does as told."  
  
"Don't worry about it, Lee," said Ruki.  
  
"Okay. Is everyone clear about what to do?" asked Lee. Everyone made a sound of agreement. "Alright! Let's do it!" said Lee.  
  
Everyone followed Lee's plan exactly. Within one and a half hours, they met up at the hospital, where they found Takato laying in a bed with Lee sitting in a nearby chair.  
  
"How is he?" asked Juri.  
  
"He just came back from getting his X-rays," said Lee, "The doctor will come with his X-rays in just a moment." At that moment, the doctor came in with a brown envelope. He switched on the fluorescent light panel on the wall and clipped Takato's X-rays to it.  
  
"I'm afraid to say that your friend has, in fact, broken his wrist," said the doctor, indicating towards the X-rays. Everyone turned towards Takato and saw that he was crying.  
  
"Poor guy," said Lee. A nurse walked in and lifted the sides of Takato's bed and released the brakes on the wheels. She took him down to the casting room where everyone waited outside.  
  
"Now Takato, you'll have to bear with me," said the doctor, "I'm going to put your bones back into place. It's going to hurt, so brace yourself." Takato gulped and shut his eyes tight. Outside in the waiting room, the other Tamers could hear screams of pain coming from the casting room. When the doctor was done, Takato's face was red and soaked in tears.  
  
"Now I'm going to put a cast over your arm," said the doctor. He walked over to the wall and wheeled over a cart containing a bucket of warm water and several sheets of plaster. He rolled up his sleeve and picked up one sheet, which he carefully touched to the surface of the water. He gently placed it over Takato's left forearm, wrist, and hand. He repeated this process many times, holding the plaster in place for a few seconds before applying more. When the doctor was done, he smoothed out the surface of the plaster and waited until it completely solidified.  
  
"All done, Takato," he said. Takato looked down at his arm, which was now encased in white plaster. A tear ran down his cheek as the nurse wheeled him back into his room.  
  
"So Takato, how do you feel?" asked Lee.  
  
"Don't ask," said Takato.  
  
"Well, your friend can go now if he wants to," said doctor.  
  
"Thank you, doctor," said Lee, "Ryo, help Takato change. Kazu and Kenta, if Ryo needs help, he'll call for you." Lee walked off with the doctor to take care of the hospital bill. Ryo helped Takato out of the hospital's pajamas and into his street clothes and ski gear. In about an hour, the Seven Tamers and their Digimon walked out of the hospital with Lee and Ryo supporting Takato.  
  
"You'll be okay, Takato," said Lee, "Just keep that cast dry."  
  
TO BE CONTINUED...  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
What's going to next? Final chapter coming up.  
  
Please read and review. 


	7. End of Vacation

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the official Digimon characters.  
  
Davis: The Tamers all decided to go to the slopes again. Takato tried snowboarding and Ryo decided to do some snowblading. Everything was going fine until some teenager cut Takato off, causing him to fall and break his arm. What else could ruin a supposedly perfect vacation?  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
Chapter 7: END OF VACATION  
  
Lee, Ryo, Kazu, and Kenta sat around together in the hot spring with Terriermon sitting on one of the shallowest areas. "So we're leaving tomorrow?" asked Kazu.  
  
"I'm afraid so," said Lee, "Since Takato's broken his arm, we'll have to leave early so he can get the right attention." The door opened and Takato stepped through wearing nothing except for his cast and a towel. Guilmon was right behind him.  
  
"Hi guys," said Takato, "Mind if I join you?" He removed his towel and wrapped it around his cast. The others just looked up at him. "What?" asked Takato. He got in the water, making sure that his left arm remained on the side while Guilmon slid in and sat next to Takato.  
  
"So Takato, is your arm feeling ant better?" asked Lee.  
  
"I'm starting to think that it's getting worse," said Takato, "I mean, I can't even scratch an itch because the dumb cast is in the way."  
  
"That's gotta suck," said Kazu.  
  
"That guy had a lotta nerve to cut in front of you like that," said Ryo.  
  
"Can we see your arm again?" asked Kenta.  
  
"As long as it doesn't get wet," said Takato. He unwrapped his towel from his arm and showed his cast to everyone.  
  
"Can I sign it?" asked Kazu, "I mean, I've never signed a cast before."  
  
"We'll go back to our room and Lee will lend you some pens," said Takato.  
  
"Hey! Keep it quiet over there!" called Ruki from the other side of the wooden wall that separated the men's side from the women's side. The Tamers sat around in the springs for about another fifteen minutes. Finally, Lee grabbed his towel and went upstairs with the others following suit. After everyone dressed, they all met in Takato, Lee, and Ryo's room. Lee reached into his backpack and pulled out a package of multi-colored felt-tip pens.  
  
"Alrighty then," said Lee, "We've got red, blue, green, purple, pink, black, white (which won't matter much, since Takato's cast is white), and yellow.  
  
"Maybe we shouldn't do this yet," said Juri, "Takato needs to rest."  
  
"Juri, you're right," said Lee, "Okay, people. Back to your respective rooms. We can sign his cast on the plane tomorrow, since it's a one-hour flight or so back home." The other Tamers left to head back to their rooms, but Juri stayed behind.  
  
"Juri? Why are you still here?" asked Takato.  
  
"I just wanted to keep you company for a little while longer," said Juri. She took Lee's red pen and drew a heart on Takato's cast. Then she wrote the words "Takato + Juri Forever" inside the heart. Takato blushed and his heart raced. Takato had never felt this way before.  
  
"Okay, Juri. Time to go back, now," said Lee, who had already changed into his pajamas.  
  
"Good night, Takato," said Juri. She gave Takato a quick peck on the cheek before leaving.  
  
"Well that went rather smoothly," said Ryo.  
  
"What are you talking about?" asked Takato, confused.  
  
"She likes you, Takato. And I'm not talking about just as a friend," answered Ryo.  
  
"Are you saying that Juri?" asked Takato, unable to complete his sentence.  
  
"That's right," said Lee, "She has crush on you."  
  
"GAH!" yelped Takato and practically fell over backwards off the bed at Lee's word.  
  
"Are you okay?" asekd Lee.  
  
"Are you serious?" asked Takato.  
  
"Let's take a look at the evidence," said Ryo, "So far, she's given you a kiss on the slope, she's given you an expensive watch, and now she just wrote both your names inside a heart on your cast. Need I say more?"  
  
"You should do something for her in return," said Lee, "to show that you care."  
  
"Are you saying I love her, too?" asked Takato.  
  
"Let's examine the evidence," said Ryo, "So far, you've blushed in front of her at the slope, you blushed in front of her at the party, and you blushed in front of her two minutes ago when she wrote that. It's evident. You like her."  
  
"Guys, you're embarrassing me," said Takato. He could feel his ears burning.  
  
"Let's get some sleep," said Lee, "Especially you, Takato." He indicated towards Takato's broken arm.  
  
"I guess you're right," said Takato. He changed into his pajamas, brushed his teeth, and got in bed. He was careful not to lay down on his broken arm, for fear that he might break it even more.  
  
The night passed quickly. When Takato woke up, he saw Lee and Ryo going around the room packing their things. He was surprised to find them packing his things, as well. Takato looked next to him and saw that his clothes had been laid out for him.  
  
"Takato, get dressed," said Lee. Takato reached up to unbutton his pajama top. But then, he realized that he was wearing nothing but his boxers.  
  
"Guys, where are my pajamas?" asked Takato.  
  
"We removed them off you while you were asleep," said Ryo, "We need to get the airport quickly, so we decided to pack your pajamas right away. Hurry up and get dressed." Takato hopped out of bed and grabbed his clothes.  
  
"You wear Joe Boxer?" asked Lee, cocking an eyebrow. Takato looked down at his light-blue boxers and shrugged. He ran off towards the bathroom, where he brushed his teeth, dressed, and went to the bathroom. then he helped Lee and Ryo take their luggage to the elevator. However, Lee insisted that Takato take it easy because of his arm. In a few minutes, all seven Tamers (along with Guilmon, Renamon, Terriermon, and Cyberdramon) met in the lobby.  
  
"I'm hungry!" complained Kazu.  
  
"Just shut up and bear it," said Ruki, annoyed with Kazu's whining. Soon, Lee and Ryo returned to the others.  
  
"Okay, we're checked out," said Lee, "but we won't have enough money to buy breakfast at the airport."  
  
"WHAT!?!? Why?" shouted the others.  
  
"Apparently, while we've been staying here, SOMEONE'S been calling room service," said Ryo.  
  
"My fault," said Lee, "I let Terriermon take a look at the menu. He put two and two together and dialed."  
  
The Tamers walked over to the door and stood there waiting for the shuttle bus to take them to the airport, which arrived in a few minutes. They loaded their luggage onto the racks and sat down for the long ride to the airport. Along the way, Takato tried to hide Juri's little message from the others, which wasn't easy, since she wrote it in one of the most noticeable spots on Takato's cast. His attempts obviously failed.  
  
"Looks like someone's in love with Takato," taunted Kazu.  
  
"Shut up, Kazu," said Takato.  
  
"'Takato and Juri forever'," read Kenta, "And it's in a heart, too."  
  
"Lay off," said Takato.  
  
"Takato and Juri sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G," sang Kazu and Kenta.  
  
"Will you all just shut up so I can concentrate?!" screamed Lee. Everyone fell silent for the rest of the ride. When they got to the airport, Ryo and Kenta went to get baggage carts while the others unloaded their bags from the bus. Kenta and Ryo returned shortly with the carts and everyone placed their luggage on top of them. As they entered the terminal, they noticed large groups of people trying to get into the gate area, but were being held back by security guards.  
  
"What's going on?" asked Ruki.  
  
"I was just wondering the same thing," said Lee. He ran up to an important- looking airport employee and asked what was going on.  
  
"All flights have been cancelled at the moment because of the heavy fog," said the employee.  
  
"Heavy fog?" asked Lee, "But we didn't see any fog on our way here."  
  
"That's the strange thing," said the employee, "There's not fog in the surrounding area. Only out on the tarmac." Lee suddenly caught on. He thanked the employee and ran back to the others.  
  
"What's going on?" asked Terriermon.  
  
"Guys," said Lee between breaths, "You won't believe this. There's a Digital Field in the tarmac."  
  
"WHAT!?" said the other Tamers.  
  
"And it's a big one," said Lee.  
  
"Look out the window!" shouted Kazu. Everyone turned towards the direction that Kazu was pointing in. Even though the fog was thick, they could still clearly see bright flames coming from inside the Digital Field. Everyone turned back and looked to see what Guilmon's reaction would be. Not to anyone's surprise, Guilmon was growling and his pupils had shrunken.  
  
"Lead the way, Guilmon," said Takato.  
  
"Ready, Terriermon?" asked Lee.  
  
"More than," said Terriermon.  
  
"Renamon?" said Ruki. The five-foot tall fox Digimon appeared behind her.  
  
"Let's go," said Renamon.  
  
"Cyberdramon," said Ryo, "Looks like we'll be needed for this battle."  
  
"Juri, Kazu, and Kenta," said Lee, "you three stay here and watch over the bags while the rest of us..."  
  
"The 'rest of us' just casually walked past the security guards without being noticed," said Terriermon, who was perched on Lee's head. Lee quickly put on his sunglasses and followed the other Tamers. They went down several escalators until they reached one of the ground-floor gates. The Digital Field was just outside.  
  
"Any last ideas?" asked Takato as he pulled his goggles over his eyes.  
  
"Not many that'll be of any help," said Ryo, pulling on his sunglasses.  
  
"Let's just go in and take care of things," said Ruki as she put on her sunglasses.  
  
Lee went over to the desk on the side and opened the doors. Thick fog floated into the terminal and the Tamers stepped outside with their Digimon.  
  
"Can you see anything?" asked Lee.  
  
"Not yet," said Takato.  
  
"Over there," said Ruki. The Tamers looked in the direction that Ruki was pointing in. Two yellow glowing eyes pierced through the thick fog of the Digital Field and stared at them. As they drew closer, the Tamers could see a large black horned dragon lying on the tarmac, resting.  
  
"Whoa! That's one big mama of a dragon!" said Terriermon.  
  
"Shush, Terriermon! He'll hear you!" said Lee.  
  
"Let's see who he is," said Ruki as she took out her D-Arc, "BlackDracomon, a Dark Dragon Digimon. Mega level."  
  
"A Mega Digimon," said Lee, "Where's Culumon?"  
  
"Right here," said the small white Digimon, "Juri brought me along."  
  
"Takato, can you slash with that arm of yours?" asked Lee.  
  
"I think so," said Takato.  
  
"Then let's get busy," said Renamon.  
  
"I'm with you," said Terriermon.  
  
"Count me in," said Cyberdramon.  
  
"Wait for me," said Guilmon.  
  
The four Tamers took out their Digivices and cards. Then they stood facing BlackDracomon with their Digimon right in front of them. "BIOMERGE ACTIVATE!" they all shouted holding up their D-Arcs. Their clothes disappeared and their bodies slowly fused with their Digimon's.  
  
"Guilmon Biomerge to...DUKEMON!"  
  
"Renamon Biomerge to...SAKUYAMON!"  
  
"Terriermon Biomerge to...SAINTGARGOMON!"  
  
"Cyberdramon Biomerge to...JUSTIMON!"  
  
"Sakuyamon, time walk all over him!" said Ruki.  
  
"Let's get him, SaintGargomon!" said Lee.  
  
"Us too, Dukemon!" said Takato.  
  
"Let give him all we've got, Justimon!" said Ryo. The four Mega Digimon launched themselves at BlackDracomon. The massive black dragon lifted his head and looked at the oncoming assault. He sighed, blowing smoke of out of his nostrils, and laid his head back down.  
  
"Well, that was certainly rude of him," said SaintGargomon.  
  
"He acts like we're not worth his time," said Sakuyamon, "Let's change that. VAJRA MANDALA!"  
  
"GIANT MISSLE!" shouted SaintGargomon.  
  
"JUSTICE KICK!" shouted Justimon.  
  
"ROYAL SABER!" shouted Dukemon.  
  
BlackDracomon, sensing attack, suddenly raised his head and looked at the oncoming attacks. "DRAGON INFERNO!" he shouted and launched a powerful fire blast from his mouth. Dukemon had to block with his shield, since the attack was so large that nobody could dodge it in time. It left a big black mark on the surface of Dukemon's shield.  
  
"That was close," said Takato.  
  
"The battle's only just started," said Lee.  
  
BlackDracomon stood up, spread his wings out, and roared. He towered high above the Tamers' Digimon.  
  
"This could be a problem," said SaintGargomon," BURST SHOT!" BlackDracomon swept back with his wing, knocking back all the missiles.  
  
"TRINITY ARM!" shouted Justimon. BlackDracomon lifted his hand and crushed Justimon into the ground, causing him to separate and De-Digivolve back into Ryo and Cyberdramon.  
  
"Now it's our turn," said Sakuyamon.  
  
"It's about time," said SaintGargomon. He and Sakuyamon ran towards BlackDracomon side by side.  
  
"VAJRA MANDALA!" shouted Sakuyamon.  
  
"GIANT MISSLE!" shouted SaintGargomon.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!" shouted BlackDracomon. His fire blast incinerated both Sakuyamon's attack as well as SaintGargomon's with one fell blow.  
  
"This isn't looking good," said SaintGargomon.  
  
"He's too powerful!" said Sakuyamon. They watched as BlackDracomon crawled towards them. he picked up each Digimon in his hands and smashed them together until they De-Digivolved.  
  
"Looks like it's up to us!" said Takato, "Let's go, Dukemon!"  
  
"Right, Takato!" came Guilmon's voice.  
  
"ROYAL SABER!" shouted Dukemon. BlackDracomon leapt back and flew up into the sky.  
  
"Let's follow him!" said Takato.  
  
"GRANI!" shouted Dukemon. Dukemon's faithful dragon, Grani, appeared in no time. Without wasting a second, Dukemon hopped onto Grani's back and took off after BlackDracomon.  
  
"How's he doing?" asked Lee.  
  
"We can only wait and hope now," said Ryo.  
  
Up in the sky, the battle raged. Dukemon atop of Grani battled the gargantuan BlackDracomon. "DRAGON INFERNO!" shouted the evil dragon. Dukemon blocked with his shield.  
  
"DRAGON DIVER!" shouted Grani. He flew up and swooped down on BlackDracomon. "YUGGOTH!" The attacks seemed to have little effect on BlackDracomon.  
  
"It's his scales!" said Dukemon, "They're so hard that nothing seems to be working!"  
  
"What about his belly?" asked Grani, "We dragons are not a protected on our bellies."  
  
"Let's go," said Dukemon. They circled around and came up under BlackDracomon. Unfortunately, the dark dragon saw them.  
  
"DRAGON INFERNO!" shouted BlackDracomon. His attack was powerful enough to knock Dukemon off Grani's back. Fortunately, the crimson dragon flew under Dukemon and caught him.  
  
"Here goes nothing," said Dukemon. He leapt off Grani's back and flew straight up at BlackDracomon's belly, arm outstretched and cape flapping in the air. His saber went deep into BlackDracomon and pierces his heart.  
  
"What?" said BlackDracomon in disbelief. He looked down and saw Dukemon bring up his shield, which was glowing brightly.  
  
"FINAL ELYSIAN!" shouted Dukemon. His attack deleted the mighty black dragon. He landed on Grani's back and they returned to the ground to be met up with cheering Tamers.  
  
"We beat him!" said Takato.  
  
A short while later, the Digimon had De-Digivolved and the Tamers were waiting for the plane.  
  
"Well, it was nice to see you again, Ryo," said Takato, "We're going to miss you."  
  
"Same," said Ryo, "Well, so long." And with one final good-bye, Ryo and Cyberdramon left and returned to the Digital World.  
  
The trip back to Tokyo was a lot smoother than the trip to Nagano. Takato's parents asked Takato what had happened and Takato explained everything.  
  
"Wow! That was quite a blast," said Takato as he rode home in the back seat of his parents' car with Guilmon.  
  
"Takato?" said Guilmon.  
  
"Yeah, Guilmon?" said Takato.  
  
"Can I have some peanut butter when we get home?" asked Guilmon.  
  
**************************************************************************** **  
  
FINALLY! I'm done! Please R&R. 


End file.
